Dominant Away Performance Included Braces by Soderstrom, Bulatovic
FLINT, Mich. (Thursday, May 12, 2022) – After it claimed an opening victory in the historic USL W League Inaugural Match at home last weekend, Indy Eleven took its act on the road and posted an emphatic 6-1 triumph over Flint City AFC at Kettering University’s Atwood Stadium. A pair of goals by forwards Katie Soderstrom and Milica Bulatovic paced Indiana’s Team, which also used tallies from Maddy Williams and Ella Rogers en route to staking the solo spot atop the Great Lakes Division standings in the early going.
A fairly even start across the first 15 minutes soon gave way under the pressure of Williams, who saw two chances go wanting just prior to her opener in the 17th minute. The play started when Rachel McCarthy’s cross from the left was punched away by Flint City AFC goalkeeper Sophie Homan only as far as the corner of the six-yard box, where Williams finished with a volley that slammed off a defender on the goalline and into the back of the net. The Eleven did not stop there, as forward Kristina Lynch surged down the left flank in the 25th minute and squared a ball for Soderstrom, who sent a rocket from 25 yards past a helpless Homan to put the Eleven up two-nil.
Flint City responded in the 38th minute, when Itala Gemelli ran onto a through ball in the top of the area and slammed a first time shot past drawn out Eleven ‘keeper Mackenzie Wood to put Flint City on the scoreboard. Indy Eleven was not deterred, as just two minutes later Soderstrom’s cross from the right corner found McCarthy deep inside the area, where her touch in traffic opened an opportunity for Ella Rogers to score from 10 yards and put Indy Eleven up 3-1 heading into halftime.
Homan initially made it difficult for the Eleven to expand the lead to start the second half with two spectacular diving saves on opportunities off the foot of Williams and a backpedaling tip save on a Soderstrom header. However, Milica Bulatovic, who made her Eleven debut in the 56th minute, provided a spark off the bench and pushed the Indy lead to 4-1 in the 71st minute with a left-footed shot from 14 yards that bent into the upper left corner.
Lynch’s defensive hustle set up that goal, and her lengthy ball from midfield contributed to Indy’s fifth in the 83rd minute, when Soderstrom received the through ball and touched over to Bulatovic, who executed efficiently with Homan off her line. The icing on the cake came in the 90th minute when Soderstrom again used a Lynch pass to break into the final third, her 30-yard run into the area ending with a cut-back and assured finish to seal the dominant performance and give the Butler University product her team-best third goal of the campaign.
Indy Eleven will travel south across the Ohio River next Friday, May 20, to begin a new phase of its Louisville-Indianapolis Proximity Association Football Contest rivalry against Racing Louisville at 7:00 p.m. ET (live on ElevenSports.com). Indy next plays at home at the Grand Park Events Center in Westfield on Friday, June 3, when it will host Midwest United FC at 7:00 p.m., and tickets for that contest are available at indyeleven.com/wleague-tickets for only $8. 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 2
Flint City AFC 1 : 6 Indy Eleven
Thursday, May 12, 2022 – 7:00 p.m.
Atwood Stadium – Flint, Mich.
Scoring Summary:
IND – Maddy Williams (Rachel McCarthy) 17’
IND – Katie Soderstrom (Kristina Lynch) 25’
FNT – Itala Gemelli (n/a) 38’
IND – Ella Rogers (Rachel McCarthy) 41’
IND – Milica Bulatovic (Kristina Lynch) 71’
IND – Milica Bulatovic (Katie Soderstrom) 83’
IND – Katie Soderstrom (Kristina Lynch) 90’
Disciplinary Summary:
none
Indy Eleven lineup: 1-Mackenzie Wood (GK), 3-Molly McLaughlin, 4-Kristina Lynch, 5-Grace Bahr (7-Becky Dean, 74’), 9-Katie Soderstrom, 12-Maddy Williams (25-Rachel Dewey, 67’), 18-Abby Isger (19-Selena Barnett, 74’), 22-Greta Kraszula, 23-Robyn McCarthy, 24-Rachel McCarthy (10-Milica Bulatovic, 56’), 26-Ella Rogers
IND substitutes: none unused
Flint City AFC lineup: 1-Sophie Homan (GK), 2-Itala Gemelli, 3-Samantha Woods, 4-Lexy Smith, 5- Paige Webber, 6-Avery Kalitta, 13-Zoë Hudson, 16-Jenna Blackburn, 17-Sami Lopez, 19-Caitlin O’Malley, 23- Chloe Woodbeck
FNT substitutions not available