B1G 2016 // Not Just a Basketball School

As you might remember from yesterday's article, Indiana boasts 24 NCAA National Championships, and since only 5 of them come from men's basketball, that means a large number of Indiana's titles come from the non-revenue sports. Going into great detail on all of them would take a lot of space, so we'll just focus on the ones that have been experiencing some form of recent success, because that way I'll actually be able to talk about these teams without having to make things up about teams and athletes I never actually saw play.

Baseball

The key turning point for IU baseball was winning the Big Ten Tournament in 2009, sending the team to just the second NCAA Tournament appearance in school history. The Hoosiers would continue to hang at or above the .500 mark for the next few seasons, until the wildly successful 2013 season saw the Hoosiers make it all the way to the College World Series in Omaha, making the first appearance for any Big Ten school in almost 30 years. On their way, the Hoosiers knocked off 7th seeded Florida State in their own building twice, as well as defeating Louisville in the CWS before dropping back to back one run games to eventual runner up Mississippi State and 3rd seed Oregon State to finish 5th in the nation. The Hoosiers returned to the NCAA Regionals in 2014 and 2015, but have yet to make it back to Omaha.

Notable players currently in MLB: Kyle Schwarber (Chicago Cubs), Sam Travis (Boston Red Sox system), Josh Phegley (Oakland Athletics, formerly Chicago White Sox), Micah Johnson (Los Angeles Dodgers system, formerly Chicago White Sox), Alex Dickerson (San Diego Padres)

Men's Soccer

Since its elevation to varsity status in 1973, Indiana Men's Soccer has been the most successful team on the field that Indiana University has ever seen. Eight time national champions, six time runner up, eighteen total College Cup appearances, twenty-nine consecutive NCAA tournament appearances and forty overall; this is the history that every man who puts on the IU Soccer jersey must live up to. Many of Indiana's players go on to play professional soccer, including current head coach Todd Yeagley and current assistant coach Brian Maisonneuve.

Notable players currently playing professionally: Femi Hollinger-Janzen, Will Bruin, Dylan Mares, Brad Ring, Eriq Zavaleta, Tommy Thompson, Luis Soffner, Eric Alexander

Women's Basketball

After hovering around the edges of being good for a few years, IU Women's Basketball broke through in 2015-16, earning an NCAA Tournament bid for the first time since 2002, earning their first NCAA tournament win since before anyone on the team was born, winning 20 regular season games for the first time in program history, and going undefeated in Assembly Hall. Head Coach Teri Moren earned Big Ten Coach of the Year honors, and sophomores Amanda Cahill and Tyra Buss earned All-Conference honors. With only one senior graduating from the team, the future looks promising for the Hoosiers, but it is up to them to keep the momentum going into the next season and beyond.

Women's Water Polo

As with the above-mentioned basketball team, water polo has been on the edge of greatness for a while. The Hoosiers have twice appeared in the NCAA tournament, falling in the first round both years. In 2016, Indiana knocked off many a ranked team, and made it to the finals of their conference tournament, but lost to Michigan for the automatic bid, and did not receive an at-large selection. They did place a couple of swimmers on the all-tournament teams, and will certainly be looking to get back to the NCAAs in 2017, when they serve as the host at the Natatorium in Indianapolis.