Aug. 19, 2015
- Read the June issue of Hawk Talk Monthly
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye iPhone app!
- Download your Hawk Talk Monthly iOS app
- Download your Hawk Talk Monthly android app
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye Android app!
- Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
THE MATCH-UP
The University of Iowa women’s soccer team opens the 2015 regular season with a pair of home matches. The Hawkeyes host Pacific on Aug. 21 at the Iowa Soccer Complex at 7 p.m (CT). Iowa is back in action Aug. 23 for a matchup with Nebraska Omaha. Sunday’s contest is slated for a 1 p.m. start time.
ON THE WEB
Iowa soccer fans can follow all home contests via live stats (GameTracker) on hawkeyesports.com. Click on the “GT” link found on both the front page and the soccer schedule page to access the live stats feed. Fans can also follow @HawkeyeSoccer for live in-game updates.
 |
SCOUTING PACIFIC
The Tigers finished the 2014 season with a 2-16-1 overall record. Pacific returns seven starters from last year’s team, including its top two scorers in junior Alex Hussar and sophomore Taylor Ayers. The Tigers are led by head coach Keith Coleman who enters his 22nd season in 2015.
PACIFIC VS. IOWA — THE SERIES
? Iowa leads the all-time series against Pacific, 1-0.
? Pacific hosted the teams’ first match on Sept. 1, 2013, in Stockton, California.
? The Hawkeyes topped the Tigers, 2-0.
SCOUTING NEBRASKA OMAHA
The Mavericks finished the 2014 season 5-12-2 overall and 3-3-2 in The Summit League. UNO returns all 11 of its starters, including its lead scorer in senior Chelsi Rohloff and 2014 Summit League Defensive Player of the Year, Hannah Wampler. Rohloff and Wampler also earned All-Summit League First Team honors. Nebraska Omaha is led by 17-year head coach Don Klosterman.
NEBRASKA OMAHA VS. IOWA — THE SERIES
Sunday marks the first meeting in the all-time series between the two schools.
LAST GAME
The Hawkeyes topped Illinois State, 1-0, on Aug. 14 in an exhibition match in Normal, Illinois. It wasn’t until the 63rd minute that junior Bri Toelle was able to get out in transition and score what was eventually the game-winning goal. The Hawkeyes tallied 11 shots, four of which were on goal.
TEAM CAPTAIN
Senior Hannah Clark has been named Iowa’s team captain for the 2015 season.
3 HAWKEYES ON B1G PLAYERS TO WATCH LIST
Senior Hannah Clark and juniors Amanda Lulek and Corey Burns were named Big Ten Players to Watch for the 2015 season.
Clark started 17 matches last season, logging 1,598 minutes in goal. The Fort Collins, Colorado, native ranked third in the Big Ten in save percentage (.844), tied for third in shutouts (9), and ranked fourth in goals against average (0.79). She anchored a Hawkeye defense that set the school record for most shutouts in a season (12) and fewest goals allowed in a season (16).
Lulek, a native of Geneva, Illinois, started 13 games as a sophomore. The defender played every minute in five games, including all 103 minutes (two overtimes) of the Big Ten title game against No. 11 Wisconsin. Lulek also netted her first career goal — a game-winner — in Iowa’s 1-0 victory at Minnesota on Sept. 20.
Burns saw action in 20-of-22 games last season with 20 starts. The Green Oaks, Illinois, native led the team in assists (7), and she was named to Top Drawer Soccer’s Team of the Week on Sept. 16 after leading Iowa to a pair of shutout victories over Illinois and Northwestern. Burns helped lead Iowa’s defense that ranked second in the Big Ten in shutouts and fourth in goals against average (0.75).
SENIOR EXPERIENCE
Senior Hannah Clark is back as the unquestioned leader of the 2015 Hawkeyes, and the team’s starting goalkeeper — her fourth season in a starting capacity.
Senior Brooke Backes has played 45 games in her first three seasons, scoring two goals and adding two assists. Senior Sarah Mazur played a career-high 15 games as a junior, while fellow senior Mackenzie Guindon is looking to contribute in 2015 following an injury-plagued career.
HAWKEYES ON TV
Iowa will appear on BTN/BTN Plus on BTN2Go eight times during the 2015 season. The Hawkeyes’ Oct. 11 home contest against Minnesota will be broadcast live on BTN.
BTN Plus will stream Iowa’s games against Michigan State (Sept. 18), Michigan (Sept. 20), Ohio State (Sept. 25), Wisconsin (Oct. 8), Illinois (Oct. 15), Nebraska (Oct. 23) and Rutgers (Oct. 28).
BTN will also be televising the Big Ten Tournament on Nov. 1-8.
LEADER OF THE DEFENSE, Hannah Clark…
? broke the school record for career shutouts in Iowa’s 1-0 victory at Michigan State on Oct. 2, 2014. Clark currently has 19 career shutouts.
? was 10-5-1 with nine shutouts and a 0.84 goals against average in 2014. The nine shutouts are the second most in a single season, while the 10 wins are the sixth-most in program history. Clark also holds the school record in both categories, posting 10 shutouts and 15 wins in 2013.
? has a 4-1 record with a 0.33 goals against average in six career Big Ten Tournament games. She has 29 saves and four shutouts in six contests.
? had four consecutive shutouts from Sept. 7-20, where she had sevens saves over 379:26 scoreless minutes. It was the second-straight season she had a four-game shutout streak.
? Clark has 29 career victories, the second-most in Iowa history, and her 210 career saves rank third in the UI record books. She is seven wins shy of passing Emily Moran as the program’s all-time wins leader.
TRANSFER ADDED
Junior Rachele Armand joined the Hawkeye soccer program this fall after spending two injury-plagued years at Louisville, helping the Cardinals to an NCAA Tournament berth in 2013.
Armand is one of three players on the Iowa roster from Waubonsie Valley High School in Illinois, along with freshmen Emma Rigby and Morgan Kemerling.
B1G IN THE POLLS
Penn State, Wisconsin, and Rutgers are ranked in the initial NSCAA Top 25 poll of the 2015 season.
Penn State is ranked No. 6, Wisconsin came in at No. 14, and Rutgers was voted No. 24. Michigan, Minnesota and Maryland are receiving votes.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN
The Hawkeyes enter the season with five starters returning from last year’s 14-win team. Head coach Dave DiIanni will lead a Hawkeye squad that features 10 incoming freshmen and one transfer in junior Rachele Armand. Iowa’s five returning starters are juniors Amanda Lulek, Bri Toelle, Natalie Krygier, and Corey Burns, and senior goalkeeper Hannah Clark.
2014 IN REVIEW
The Hawkeyes finished the 2014 season with a 14-7-1 overall and 7-5-1 Big Ten record. The seven conference victories ties the program record for Big Ten wins in a single season, and the 14 wins are the second most in school history. After entering the Big Ten Tournament as the No. 5 seed, Iowa posted victories over No. 23 Rutgers and Northwestern to advance to the conference tournament championship game for a second straight season.
The Hawkeyes finished 2014 with a school-record 14 shutouts in 22 games to rank 20th nationally with a .545 shutout percentage. Iowa’s defense also was in the top 35 in the country in saves percentage (31st, .838) and goals against average (35th, .754).
Academically, the Hawkeyes garnered the NSCAA Team Academic Award for an eighth straight season, and nine soccer student-athletes garnered Academic All-Big Ten honors. Seniors Caitlin Brown and Emily Scott received Scholar All-Region recognition.
BURNS, ARMAND WIN WPSL NATIONAL TITLE
Juniors Corey Burns and Rachele Armand helped lead the Chicago Red Star Reserves to a Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL) National Championship — the team’s first national title — on July 27 in Edmond, Oklahoma.
NEXT UP
The Hawkeyes will remain at home for a match on Friday, Aug. 28, against South Dakota State at the Iowa Soccer Complex. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. (CT).
