Indiana’s Team Crowned Great Lakes Division Champions in the Motor City, Clinches USL W League Playoffs Berth
HAMTRAMCK, Mich. (Friday, July 1, 2022) – Indy Eleven concluded its final USL W League regular season road trip by bringing back some hardware to Indiana via a 3-0 victory over Detroit City FC this evening at Keyworth Stadium. Two goals by forward Katie Soderstrom and another from forward Maddy Williams within the first 11 minutes of the second half push the Eleven’s undefeated record to 8W-0L-2D and lifted Indiana’s Team to the three points it needed to be crowned Great Lakes Division Champions.
With the division title in hand – with two games to spare – Indy Eleven has secured a berth in the inaugural USL W League Playoffs, which will begin with a quarterfinal round match on Wednesday, July 13.
The match opened with a back-and-forth trading of attacks for the first 20 minutes, the chances starting early with a DCFC shot that rang the crossbar in the fourth minute. Soderstrom’s left-footed shot from 25 yards out in the 14th minute forced a save by DCFC goalkeeper Wamer Deighton at her left right post, while Eleven midfielder Isidora Gajdobranski’s header from six yards out four minutes later also drew a piece of the crossbar and stayed out. Half chances ruled for the rest of the half until the 40th minute, when Indy midfielder Ella Rogers ran onto Williams’ laid off ball from deep inside the area, but her shot hit off the last defender to keep the match scoreless heading into the half.
Soderstrom took matters into her own hands with a brilliant solo effort soon after the restart. In the 47th minute, she carried the ball down the right channel from midfield, made a cut inside the area’s top, and nailed a left-footed shot inside the right post, her precise finish crossing up Deighton and giving Indiana’s Team a 1-0 lead.
But for Soderstrom, one goal wasn’t enough. In the 51st minute, the Butler University senior scored her team-leading ninth goal of the season, giving Indy a two-nil lead after redirecting midfielder Abby Isger’s squared pass into the six. Williams joined in on the barrage in the 56th minute, when Isger provided her second assist from the left endline in mere minutes on a cutback ball Williams finished from 10 yards, giving the Girls in Blue three goals within a head-spinning 10-minute span.
Indy Eleven expertly saw things out over the final half hour, with Detroit resigned to using the majority of their subs in an effort to both reenergize their squad and provide valuable minutes for its depth. A thin bench on the evening for Indy meant more opportunities for Soderstrom, who would have found her hat trick in the 70th minute if not for a save by Detroit ‘keeper, while substitute striker Rachel McCarthy forced Deighton’s best save of the evening four minutes later via a diving effort.
With the Indy backline keeping Detroit to mostly shots from distance throughout, Indy netminder Mackenzie Wood didn’t have many tough saves to make, but her 88th minute stop on a 25-yard effort destined for the upper corner did stand out. Wood’s fourth clean sheet on the season was the Eleven’s fifth overall in 10 outings to date, helping to give the squad an impressive +19 goal differential on the campaign (25 goals for/6 goals against).
Indy Eleven will close out its 2022 USL W League regular season with a pair of home games at different venues, starting with Kalamazoo FC’s visit to the Grand Park Events Center this Sunday, July 3, at 1:00 p.m.
Indy Eleven will close things out by taking part in a special USL Championship/W League doubleheader against Detroit City FC next Saturday, July 9, at IUPUI Carroll Stadium. The 2-for-1 ticket for that game day at “The Mike” – where Indiana’s Team will look to break the attendance record for a women’s soccer match in the Hoosier State of 4,137 spectators – will gain fans admittance to both the 2:00 p.m. women’s kickoff and the 7:00 p.m. men’s nightcap.
Tickets for both the July 3 & 9 gamedays are available for purchase at indyeleven.com/wleague-tickets. To learn more about the newest edition of Indiana’s Team representing the women’s game, visit indyeleven.com/wleague.
2022 USL W League Regular Season – Matchday 10
Detroit City FC 0 : 3 Indy Eleven
Friday, July 1, 2022 – 7:30 p.m. ET
Keyworth Stadium – Hamtramck, Mich.
Scoring Summary:
IND – Katie Soderstrom (unassisted) 47’
IND – Katie Soderstrom (Abby Isger) 51’
IND – Maddy Williams (Abby Isger) 56’
Disciplinary Summary:
n/a
Indy Eleven lineup: 1-Mackenzie Wood (GK), 5-Grace Bahr, 7-Becky Dean, 9-Katie Soderstrom, 12-Maddy Williams (24-Rachel McCarthy, 61’), 13-Jenna Chatterton (Reese Sochacki, 68’), 15-Isidora Gajdobranski (31-Emma Johnson, 56’) , 18-Abby Isger, 22-Greta Kraszula, 23-Robyn McCarthy, 26-Ella Rogers
IND substitutes: 30-Kate Phillips
Detroit City FC line-up: 88-Deighton Wamer (GK), 3- Rachel Philpotts, 5-Emilie Fardner, 8-Shannon McCarthy, 14-Madison Duncan, 20-Niomo Grimaldo (12-Rylee Clark, 75’), 26-Kayla Addison (21-Nicole Grimaldo, 66’), 29-Elisa Baeron (55-Maia Soulis, 65’), 32-Gabriella Pool (7- Morgan Reitano, 75’), 40-Alia Fredericks (10-Kate Childers, 66’), 66-Acadia Murphy
DET substitutes: 1- Bethany Kopel, 6-Ally Childers
