Oct. 16, 2012
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THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa women’s soccer team will host Nebraska on Thursday before traveling to Northwestern to close the week. Iowa will host the Cornhuskers at the Iowa Soccer Complex with first touch set for 7 p.m. Iowa will meet the Wildcats on Sunday at Lakeside Field. First touch is set for 1 p.m. (CT).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Nebraska (6-9-1, 3-5-0) suffered the same fate Iowa did last weekend, losing to Ohio State and Penn State at home. Nebraska has defeated Northwestern, Indiana and Wisconsin in Big Ten play this season. Sophomore forward Mayme Conroy leads the Cornhusker offense with 11 goals. Junior Emma Stevens has a 5-9-1 record in goal and a 1.69 goals against average.
Northwestern (4-10-2, 0-8-0) is winless in conference play this season, but is coming off competitive matches against Wisconsin and Minnesota. The Wildcats have been outscored 2-15 in conference play. Junior forward Kate Allen leads Northwestern with 15 points from six goals and three assists. Sophomore goalkeeper Anna Cassell has a 1.69 goals against average this season.
OHIO STATE 4, IOWA 1
The Hawkeyes suffered its biggest setback of the season last Friday against a hot Ohio State team that was won three straight league matches. The Buckeyes jumped out to a 3-0 lead, and would close with a 4-1 advantage. Senior Dana Dalrymple gave Iowa a glimmer of hope in the 59th minute, arching a shot from the far right side of the box into the corner of the net. Iowa took 15 shots and earned nine corner kicks. Junior Ashley Catrell had four shots, and freshman goalkeeper Hannah Clark made four saves.
#4 PENN STATE 2, IOWA 1
The Hawkeyes went toe-to-toe with fourth-ranked Penn State last Sunday, but couldn’t pull even despite leading in most statistical categories. Iowa outshot the Nittany Lions 23-15 and led 6-5 in shots on goal and 8-4 in corners, but Penn State came out on top, 2-1. The Nittany Lions used two goals from Taylor Schram to earn the win. Iowa tied the match at one goal apiece in the 19th minute as Catrell played a through ball to sophomore Cloe Lacasse. Lacasse got behind the backline and beat a charging goalkeeper to notch her 12th goal of the season. Penn State scored the game-winner in the 57th minute. Lacasse and Catrell each had seven shots, two of which went on goal.
LACASSE CLIMBS CHARTS
Sophomore Cloe Lacasse is climbing Iowa’s career offensive charts. She tallied her 12th goal of the season against the Nittany Lions, giving her 30 points off 12 goals and six assists. The Sudbury, Ontario, native had the exact same numbers last season.
Lacasse ranks fourth in career points with 60, only one behind Linzy Wolman. She ranks fourth in career goals with 24, only one behind Katelyn Quinn, and tied for fourth in career game-winning goals (6). Lacasse’s 12 goals this year rank as the second best season output since Sarah Lynch’s 15 goals in 1999, and her 30 points rank as the most season points since Lynch’s 36.
CONSISTENCY IN THE LINEUP
Stability in the lineup has been an asset for Iowa. The Hawkeyes have used the same starting lineup in the past six matches, and have started the same player for every match in eight of 11 positions. Jade Grimm, Katie Brown, Melanie Pickert, Kat Lewis, Anne Marie Thomas, Ashley Catrell, Katie Nasenbenny and Dana Dalrymple have started every match. Alex Melin and Cloe Lacasse have started all but one match this season.
HAWKEYES SET SHUTOUT RECORD
With Iowa’s shutout at Minnesota, the Hawkeyes have set the program record for shutouts in a season (10). Iowa had nine shutouts last season. The Hawkeyes have blanked Eastern Illinois, North Dakota, Loyola Chicago, Northern Iowa, LIU Brooklyn, Saint Louis, and Big Ten opponents Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State and Minnesota.
HAWKEYES APPROACHING RECORDS
Iowa has set or tied two team records this season; most shutouts and longest winning streak, and is approaching more. The Hawkeyes are two wins away from Iowa’s season win mark (13) and are two home wins away from tying the home win record (8). Iowa has allowed just 13 goals this season, which is four under the team record with three matches remaining.
DOMINATING DEFENSE
Defense has been the staple of Iowa’s game this season, allowing just 13 goals with a 0.74 goals against average. Iowa has shutout 10 opponents, and allowed an opponent to score over two goals only once. Iowa ranks first in the Big Ten in saves (89), second in shutouts (10) and third in goals allowed and goals against average. Iowa’s defense ranks 15th in the nation in save percentage, 34th in goals against average and 14th in shutout percentage.
GKs STRONG BETWEEN POSTS
Freshman goalkeepers Meg Goodson and Hannah Clark have come up big in goal for the Hawkeyes.
Clark ranks fourth in the Big Ten in goals against average (0.66), third in save percentage (.885) and eighth in total saves (46). She ranks 12th in the nation in save percentage and 30th in goals against average. Goodson ranks fifth in the league in save percentage (.837). She has allowed seven goals while making 36 stops. Goodson has an .837 save percentage.
GETTING THEIR SHOTS OFF
The Hawkeyes rank first in the Big Ten in total shots (283), and have been dangerous on offense this season. Iowa ranks second in the league in points (101), goals (37), goals per game (2.18) and corners (86) and third in victory margin (+1.41). Iowa ranks 31st in the nation in scoring offense and 30th in win-loss-tied percentage.
Lacasse has led the attack this season with 30 points from 12 goals and six assists. She ranks second in the Big Ten in points and goals, and seventh in assists and shots. She ranks 14th in the nation in total goals and points. Junior Ashley Catrell has provided 18 points from seven goals and four assists, while senior Dana Dalrymple has tallied 15 points from six goals and three assists.
HAWKEYES SET MARK
Iowa earned a point toward Big Ten standings for the third consecutive league road match at Minnesota. The last time the Hawkeyes earned at least one point in three straight conference road matches was in 1999.
IOWA IN THE RANKINGS
Iowa sits at 44th in the latest NCAA RPI Poll. Iowa is receiving votes in the NSCAA Coaches’ Poll and in the Soccer Times Poll. The Hawkeyes are fifth in the NSCAA Great Lakes Poll, and rank 30th in the TopDrawerSoccer.com Tournament 64 Rankings.
HAWKEYES DOMINATING STATS
Iowa has looked just as impressive in the stat book as it has on the field this season. Iowa has outscored its opponents 37-13 this season, scoring 2.18 goals per match compared to the opposition’s 0.76. Iowa has outshot opposition teams 283-257 with a 127-102 edge on shots on goal and an 86-67 advantage in corner kicks.
IOWA FINISHES PERFECT IN NONCONFERENCE
Iowa finished undefeated in nonconference play for the second consecutive season. Iowa went 9-0-0 and outscored its opponents 30-3 before opening Big Ten play. Iowa has won its last 18 nonconference matches, outscoring its opponents 71-8 in that stretch. Iowa is undefeated in its past 19 nonconference matches, with its last loss coming on Sept. 19, 2010.
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.
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 63 victories with the Hawkeyes, and sports a 154-122-38 overall coaching record. Rainey guided Iowa to its most successful season in program history last year, 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.