Timbers Homegrown Sulte has been in top form throughout his 2024 loan with Indy Elven, and is now heading into the USL Championship postseason.
Portland Timbers Homegrown goalkeeper Hunter Sulte has spent just over eight months on loan at Indy Eleven in the USL Championship.
Arriving in February of this year, Sulte made his Indy Eleven debut a couple of months later with a solid performance in a 1-1 draw with Colorado Springs. His display on his first ever appearance earned him a start in 29 of the club's next 31 games accross all competitions.
In USL Championship play, Sulte has recorded nine shutouts, 73 saves, and a penalty-kick stop in 29 appearances. Since first inserting Sulte into goal on April 20, Indy Eleven has registered a 13-6-8 record when Sulte is on the field, with his efforts being an integral part of their postseason qualification as the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.
After arriving in Indianapolis, Sulte found an environment that was perfect for his next phase of development. After making 28 appearances across two seasons with Timbers2 in MLS NEXT Pro, the move to the USL Championship felt natural to the 22-year-old Timbers Academy product.
"I say [the move] helped me a lot, developing into more of a professional, and kind of out of that Academy and T2 phase," said Sulte in a recent interview on his loan stint at Indy Eleven. "I feel like it's given me a lot of confidence this year, playing with a bunch of older guys who have been in MLS and just kind of getting that competitiveness."
Sulte has earned various recognitions at the club and league level throughout the year. He finished the USL Championship regular season and won the USL Championship Save of the Week award four times (June 18, July 16, August 13, and October 8). With Indy Eleven, his nine shutouts already ranks fourth all-time.
The next challenge? The USL Championship Playoffs. The Anchorage, Alaska-native is well aware of the hard work both he and his teammates have put in throughout the campaign to get to where they are.
"We had our ups and downs throughout the season," he said. "You can tell the guys who came in every day, it was our end goal to make it [to the playoffs]."
Indy and Sulte's road to the 2024 USL Championship Final begins at home at Michael A. Carroll Stadium on Sunday, Nov. 3 at 10 a.m. PT, as they host fifth-seed Rhode Island FC in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.
"It's massive for us. We definitely wanted it so much," says Sulte on clinching a playoff berth. "We have a hungry group of guys, and I think we can pull this off here."
