SLU’s Carlos Leatherman breaks upfield with the ball, while Indiana’s Justin Weiss tries to defend during Friday’s NCAA men’s soccer match at Hermann Stadium in St. Louis. (Photo: Thomas Grove)

ST. LOUIS, MO — The Saint Louis University men’s soccer team kicked off the 2024 NCAA season with a bang Friday night, by pushing around and shutting out No. 7-ranked Indiana for a 2-0 win at Hermann Stadium.

Saint Louis controlled the action from start to finish and came up big on defense when Indiana began to mount a challenge in the final minutes of the game.

“It was a very high-level game, especially for the first one of the year,” SLU head coach Kevin Kalish said. “I think Indiana-SLU brings that out of both teams. We have really good players at every position and they’re confident and playing together as a group. It’s a good first step.”

Indiana’s offense, which many believe will be one of the best in the Big 10 this season, had trouble generating any shots or real offensive chances during the first 8- minutes of the game. SLU’s defense swarmed the Hoosiers all night and denied almost every offensive move Indiana made.

And while denying the Hoosiers any scoring chances, the Billikens produced several of their own, which had the fired up crowd of 5,753 fans in a frenzy all night.

That excitement came to a crescendo in the 16th minute, when SLU’s Matthew Wrobel received a crossing pass from new teammate Luis Lara. Wrobel, a junior forward who had three goals and three assists for the Billikens last season, gathered in the pass then outmanuevered an Indiana defender to create some space, before firing a shot past Indiana goalkeeper JT Harms for a goal that made the score 1-0 Saint Louis.

“Forwards sometimes need that belief and confidence, and Matt’s changed his body with work he put in with his body fat and overall fitness level,” Kalish said. “He came in as fittest guy in the group. He sacrificed a lot and it’s showing.”

SLU held that 1-0 lead until midway through the second half, when a free kick by Seth Anderson took a weird bounce then caromed off an Indiana defender and into the net for an own goal that put the Billikens up 2-0.

From there, SLU just relied on its defense to keep the Hoosiers at bay. Indiana did get a couple of scoring chances late, but SLU goalkeeper Jeremi Abonnel came up huge when his team needed him to.

In the 82nd minute, Indiana was awarded a penalty kick, but Abonnel made a sprawling save, then reached high to stop a second shot by the Hoosiers on the rebound.

“It just starts from work we put in the preseason,” Wrobel said. “If you look at the energy we brought, we out-worked them. That’s the whole team working and that brings chances.”

The Billikens, who were unranked in the United Soccer Coaches preseason Top 25 poll after missing the NCAA Tournament last season, will almost certainly be ranked when the new poll comes out next week.

That should add more fuel to the fire of what is an already highly anticipated matchup on Thursday, August 29, when Saint Louis returns to action with its first road game of the season, at No. 10-ranked SMU. The Mustangs are also 1-0, after winning their season opener this past Thursday against Air Force. They’ll play Oral Roberts on Sunday, then welcome SLU next Thursday.

“It’s going to be a big test,” Kalish said. “They’re a great team that plays a tough style. We’re looking forward to going down there and seeing how we match up.”

SLU’s next home game is September 2, when the Billikens will host IU-Indy at Hermann Stadium.

2024 SLU BILLIKENS MEN’S SOCCER SCHEDULE

Date	Time	At	Opponent	Location
August 29, 2024 (Thursday)	8:30 pm	Away	#10 SMU	Dallas, Texas
September 2, 2024 (Monday)	7 pm	Home	IU Indianapolis	Hermann Stadium
September 8, 2024 (Sunday)	6 pm	Neutral	SIUE	TBA
September 13, 2024 (Friday)	9 pm	Away	Portland	Portland, Ore.
September 17, 2024 (Tuesday)	7 pm	Home	Lipscomb	Hermann Stadium
September 21, 2024 (Saturday)	6 pm	Away	La Salle	Philadelphia, Pa.
September 28, 2024 (Saturday)	7:30 pm	Home	Loyola Chicago	Hermann Stadium
October 1, 2024 (Tuesday)	7 pm	Home	Charlotte	Hermann Stadium
October 5, 2024 (Saturday)	7 pm	Home	Duquesne	Hermann Stadium
October 9, 2024 (Wednesday)	6 pm	Away	Fordham	Bronx, N.Y.
October 12, 2024 (Saturday)	6 pm	Away	Rhode Island	Kingston, R.I.
October 19, 2024 (Saturday)	7 pm	Home	VCU	Hermann Stadium
October 23, 2024 (Wednesday)	6 pm	Away	Missouri State	Springfield, Mo.
October 26, 2024 (Saturday)	7 pm	Home	George Washington	Hermann Stadium
October 29, 2024 (Tuesday)	7 pm	Home	Blackburn	Hermann Stadium
November 2, 2024 (Saturday)	6 pm	Away	Dayton	Dayton, Ohio