Hawkeyes Travel to West Point, N.Y.

Week Four Notes

This Week
The University of Iowa soccer team travels to West Point, N.Y., to compete at the Black Knight Classic. The Hawkeyes open with a contest against Army at 6 p.m. Friday. Iowa will take on LIU Brooklyn at 10 a.m. Sunday. Both matches will be played at Clinton Field.

Scouting The Opponents
Iowa will take on two teams that advanced to the NCAA tournament last season.

The Black Knights improved their record to .500 in their last contest, a 1-0 upset victory against Seton Hall. Army has also defeated Vermont and Texas State this season. Army is led by junior Joey Molacek with seven points (three goals, one assist). Sophomore Linda Rosas has an .815 save percentage between the posts this season.

LIU Brooklyn is coming off its first victory of the season, a 1-0 win over UMBC. Freshman Mariana Ruas scored the Blackbird’s lone goal of the season. LIU is averaging 6.5 shots per game. LIU’s senior goalkeeper Jennifer Bannon has a .714 save percentage.

Hawkeyes Keep Rolling
After another pair of victories last weekend, the Hawkeyes are off to their second best start in program history with a perfect 6-0-0 record.

The soccer team gave Iowa a 2-0 advantage in the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series with a 3-1 victory against Iowa State on the road. The Hawkeyes took a 2-0 lead after the first half on goals from sophomores Katie Nasenbenny (24′) and Cloe Lacasse (28′). Iowa put the game on ice with a goal in the 68th minute from freshman Brooke Backes, who won a scramble in the box after rebounding her own shot that bounced off the post. Iowa allowed a goal in the 87th minute. Freshman Hannah Clark recorded the win in goal, saving two shots in 45 minutes played.

Iowa tallied another 3-1 victory two days later over Valparaiso at the Iowa Soccer Complex. Iowa struck first on a firecracker free kick from sophomore Melanie Pickert in the fourth minute. Lacasse scored her seventh goal of the season in the 23rd minute to put Iowa ahead 2-0. Senior Dana Dalrymple scored her 10th goal of her career in the 63rd minute to give Iowa breathing room. The Crusaders scored in the 78th minute. Freshman goalkeeper Meg Goodson improved her record to 2-0 this season with two saves in 45 minutes played. Junior Ashley Catrell had eight shots, three on target, while Lacasse had three points.

Live Results
Live results for both of this weekend’s matches will be avaliable by Gametracker, which can be found on Iowa’s schedule page on Hawkeyesports.com. The Iowa-Army contest will also be streamed online live for a fee. That link can also be found on Iowa’s schedule page.

Hawkeyes On Top of Big Ten Standings
Iowa is currently in sole possession of the top spot in Big Ten standings as the only team in the conference with an unblemished record. It is the second year in a row Iowa has climbed to No. 1 in Big Ten standings at some point in the season.

The Hawkeyes rank within the top two of seven major statistical categories. Iowa ranks first in shots (119), goals (21), goals per game (3.5), goals allowed (2), goals against average (.33) and shutouts (4), and rank second in total points (53).

Rainey Approaching Win #150
Head coach Ron Rainey sits at career victory No. 149 after Iowa’s win over Valparaiso. Rainey has a 149-119-34 career record in 15 years coaching. He holds a 59-54-13 record in his seventh season at Iowa, and is the school’s all-time winningest coach.

Iowa Improves Ranking
The Hawkeyes jumped four spots in the TopDrawerSoccer.com Tournament 64 National Ranking. Iowa is ranked No. 37 in this week’s poll. Iowa also made its debut in the NSCAA/Continental Tire ranking, taking the No. 6 spot in the Great Lakes poll.

Nonconference Success
Iowa has won 15 consecutive nonconference matches, outscoring its opponents 62-7 in that stretch.The Hawkeyes have played 16 consecutive nonconference matches without a loss. Iowa’s last loss in nonconference play came on Sept. 19, 2010, at Nebraska (3-1).

In-State Dominance
The Hawkeyes are the soccer state champions for the fifth straight season, beating both in-state rivals this year.The Hawkeyes are unbeaten in their last 15 in-state regular season matches. In that stretch, Iowa has a 6-0-1 advantage over Iowa State, 6-0-0 advantage over Northern Iowa and a 2-0-0 advantage over Drake. Iowa has outscored its in-state foes 39-4 in that stretch.

Hawkeyes Start Fast
Iowa has taken a lead into halftime in every match this season, and is yet to trail in a game or be tied in a contest after the 0-0 mark. The Hawkeyes have outscored their opponents 12-0 in the first half.

Shutout Streak
Iowa opened the season with an impressive shutout streak, becoming the first team in program history to open with four straight shutouts. The Hawkeyes nearly made it five, before allowing a goal in the 87th minute against Iowa State. Iowa went 447 minutes without allowing a goal.

Hawkeyes Dominating Stats
Iowa has looked just as impressive in the stat book as it has on the field this season. The Hawkeyes have outscored their opponents 21-2 this season, and have outshot them 119-57. Iowa holds a 59-23 advatage in shots on goal. Iowa is averaging 3.5 goals per game and has a .496 shot on goal percentage.

Lacasse On Career Goal List
Sophomore Cloe Lacasse ranks sixth on Iowa’s all-time career goal list after her 23rd minute goal against Valparaiso. Lacasse has seven goals this season, and 19 in her career. She has scored 19 goals in 26 career games played. Sarah Lynch is Iowa’s all-time goals leader with 46. Lacasse has 18 points this season, and is also leading the team with four assists. Lacasse ranks seventh in career points with 48. Lynch is also Iowa’s points leader with 112.

GKs Getting Job Done
Iowa’s goalkeepers are making it hard on the opposition this season, as freshmen Hannah Clark and Meg Goodson have each allowed only one goal.

Clark holds a 4-0-0 record with seven saves through 284 minutes played. The Fort Collins, Colo., native has a .857 save percentage and a .32 goals against average.

Goodson holds a 2-0-0 record with 11 saves through 180 minutes. The Van Meter, Iowa, native has a .917 save percentage and a .50 goals against average.

Sophomore Kiley Beck also has three saves through 73 minutes played without allowing a goal.

Team Captains
The Hawkeyes have three team captains this season. Senior Dana Dalrymple and juniors Alex Melin and Kat Lewis were voted as captains by their teammates.

Hawkeyes on tv
Iowa will appear live on Big Ten Network at least twice this season.

Iowa’s Big Ten opener against Illinois on Sept. 16 will be televised live. The match begins at 3 p.m. in Champaign, Ill. The Hawkeyes will appear live on BTN on Sept. 30 when they travel to Michigan State. The match will begin at 1 p.m. in East Lansing, Mich.

Ron Rainey
Iowa head coach Ron Rainey enters his seventh season at the helm of the program as the winningest coach in program history. Rainey has 59 victories with the Hawkeyes, and sports a 149-119-34 overall coaching record.

Rainey guided Iowa to its most successful season in program history last season, as Iowa went 13-4-3 and had its highest winning percentage ever. Rainey has guided the Hawkeyes to three Big Ten Tournaments, and has helped five Hawkeyes earn All-Big Ten honors.