Parity was supposed to have set in this season, and it certainly has.

Besides Indiana, the Big Ten men's soccer race is tight from top to bottom as teams make their push down the home stretch.

Hoosiers getting lonely

No. 5 Indiana (13-2-2, 6-0 Big Ten) clinched its sixth consecutive conference championship two weeks ago, and is sitting pretty waiting to make a run at the Big Ten tournament championship.

"The one good thing is that there are no easy games in the Big Ten," Indiana men's soccer coach Jerry Yeagley said before his team defeated Penn State, 1-0, earlier this year. The Lions were one of few teams to give the Hoosiers any trouble all season.

The Hoosiers will tune-up Sunday against the Indiana University of Pennsylvania before taking next week off to rest.

All finished

Penn State (10-7, 3-3) knew after its 1-0 loss to Michigan State two weeks ago that it was in trouble.

"We basically gave away the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament," Penn State men's soccer interim coach Marlon LeBlanc said following the match.

However, the Nittany Lions are not dead yet, as Michigan State (10-6, 3-3) must defeat Bowling Green on Sunday to secure finishing ahead of the Lions.

The Spartans are struggling, going 4-4 in their last eight games, leaving them vulnerable to a seed lower than two.

The Lions, on the other hand, are saving their best for last and a victory at home over Old Dominion on Sunday, with help, could still result in the No. 2 seed despite their turbulent season.

Moving up?

While the Lions and Spartans are in the limelight now, three teams are hobbling their way back into the race.

Michigan (7-6-1, 2-3) may be the hottest team in the conference right now. The Wolverines have won three straight, including a 5-0 victory over Northwestern last weekend.

"Any time you play better it's important," Michigan men's soccer assistant coach Ernie Yarbarough said. "We are playing good soccer and hitting our form."

The Wolverines get Ohio State this Sunday and then play two more non-conference games before the tournament.

Winning on Sunday is not going to be easy, because the Buckeyes (10-5, 2-2) are in their way. Their final game will not be until next weekend against sorry Northwestern. However, both games are on the road, where the Buckeyes are just 2-2.

There is another team in the mix looking to finish .500 and it has the easiest task. Wisconsin (8-8, 2-3) faces the Wildcats on Sunday. A victory and some help could propel them toward a home game in the tournament.

Still on the Bottom

This was supposed to be the year Northwestern (7-9, 0-4) left its "doormat" title behind to become a contender. While sporting a respectable 7-5 record outside of the Big Ten, the Wildcats are still the conference's whipping boys.

The race is far from over, but however the teams finish the season, the Big Ten tournament figures to be a classic.