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THIS WEEK
The 18th-ranked University of Iowa field hockey team (6-4, 0-3) is back in action this weekend. The Hawkeyes travel to Bloomington, Indiana, for a conference match against the Hoosiers on Saturday at 2 p.m. (CT). Iowa then travels to Louisville, Kentucky, to challenge the seventh-ranked Cardinals on Sunday at noon (CT). Friday’s game will be streamed live on BTN2GO.
SCOUTING INDIANA:
Indiana is 6-4 overall record and 1-1 in conference play. The Hoosiers have faced four ranked opponents this season and have lost all four matches. Indiana’s conference loss came against No. 6 Maryland (4-1) on Sept. 17. The Hoosiers registered their first conference win last Friday versus Rutgers, 3-2. Senior Kate Barber leads the Big Ten with 15 goals and 33 points. Junior Maddie Latino has the second most assists in the Big Ten (8), while teammate, Mollie Getzfread trails her by one ranking third in the Big Ten with seven assists.
IOWA VS. INDIANA — THE SERIES
• Iowa leads the series, 18-7.
• Iowa is 6-2 when facing the Hoosiers in Indiana.
• The last time the two teams met was last season. Indiana defeated Iowa, 3-1 in Bloomington.
BIG TEN LEADERS FACE OFF
• Four Big Ten goal leaders will square off Friday. Indiana’s Kate Barber (15) and Taylor Pearson (8), as well as Iowa’s Natalie Cafone (11) and Katie Birch (7) will all see action in Friday’s match.
• Indiana’s Kate Barber leads the Big Ten in goals (15) and points (33), while Iowa’s Natalie Cafone currently ranks second in goals (11) and points (28).
• The match will also feature four Big Ten assist leaders. Indiana’s Maddie Latino ranks second with eight assists and Mollie Getzfread ranks third with seven assists. Iowa’s Natalie Cafone has six assists and Chandler Ackers has five, ranking them third and fourth, respectively.
SCOUTING NO. 7 LOUISVILLE
Louisville enters this weekend with a 9-1 overall record and is in fourth place in the ACC with a1-1 conference mark. The Cardinals’ only loss came to then-No. 4 Duke, 2-0. Louisville got its first conference win last weekend when they beat then-No. 14 Wake Forest, 2-0, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Louisville has the current goals, assists, and points leaders in the ACC. Freshman Minout Mink leads the ACC in goals (9) and points (18). Senior Erin McCrudden leads the ACC with nine assists.
IOWA VS. No. 7 LOUISVILLE — THE SERIES
• Louisville leads all-time the series, 6-4.
• Iowa is 2-2 when playing the Cardinals in Louisville.
•The last time the Hawkeyes and Cardinals met was in 2012. Louisville won, 2-1, at Trager Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky.
STANDOUT FRESHMEN SHOWDOWN
• Minout Mink (Louisville) and Katie Birch (Iowa) will face off this weekend.
• Mink’s team-high nine goals and 19 points leads the ACC.
•Birch has registered seven goals this season, which is second best on the team and ties for fifth in the Big Ten. Birch was also named Big Ten Freshman of the Week in back-to-back weeks (Aug. 30 and Sept. 6).
• Mink and Birch have each scored hat tricks this season. Mink’s hat trick came on Sept. 9 against Central Michigan, while Birch registered three goals on Sept. 4, against Saint Louis.
LAST TIME OUT
The then-15th-ranked University of Iowa field hockey team fell to Rutgers at Grant Field Sunday, 2-1.
Rutgers got out to a 2-0 lead in the first half. Linde van Schaik was credited with both of the Scarlet Knights’ goals, scoring in the sixth and the 30th minute.
After being held scoreless in the first half, Iowa was able to get on the board in the second half. Redshirt senior Natalie Cafone scored her 12th goal of the season when she tipped senior Chandler Ackers’ shot post the goalkeeper in the 64th minute to make the score, 2-1.
Despite having a two-player advantage due to a pair of green cards late in the second half, the Hawkeyes were unable to score the equalizing goal as Rutgers secured the victory.
The Hawkeyes had 12 shots and four corners in the match. Senior Alexandra Pecora made four saves in the loss.
PECORA NAMED NFHCA DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK (SEPT. 14)
University of Iowa field hockey senior Alexandra Pecora was named Longstreth/NFHCA Division I Player of the Week, the NFHCA office announced on Sept. 14. It marked the first national weekly honor of Pecora’s career.
Pecora, who earned her second career Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week award on Sept. 13 helped the Hawkeyes post wins over Monmouth (4-0) on Sept. 10 and Kent State (2-0) on Sept.11. The goalkeeper registered back-to-back shutouts, recording one save against Monmouth and six against Kent State.
In her four years at Iowa, the Marlton, New Jersey, native has played in a total of 46 games and accumulated 182 saves. Pecora has five shutouts in her career.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Iowa’s 11 goals and 39 shots against Saint Louis are the most by any Big Ten team in a match this season.
Individually, Alexandra Pecora posted back-to-back shutouts against Monmouth and Kent State, and combined with Katie Jones to blank Saint Louis. The senior is second in the Big Ten with two shutouts.
Natalie Cafone ranks in the top-10 in a number of statiscal categories in the Big Ten. The Hawkeye senior ranks third in shots per match (4.9), second in points per match (2.8), second in goals per match (1.10), and second in goals (11).
Fresham Katie Birch is also in the top-10 in a hand full of statiscal categories in the Big Ten. The freshman ranks second in shots per game (5.20), tied for fourth in goals (7), and tied for second in game winning goals (2).
Iowa is the only Big Ten team to have two players (Katie Birch and JoElla Guagliardo) record hat tricks this season.
CAFONE, ACKERS LOOK TO KEEP STREAKS ALIVE
• Natalie Cafone is currently on a four match goal streak scoring one goal against No. 4 Penn State, Ball State, and Rutgers, and two against Maryland this past weekend. Cafone is also on a 10 match point streak, scoring at least one goal or an assist in every match this season.
• Chandler Ackers is currently on a four match point streak. The streak started against No.4 Penn State on Sept. 16 when the senior was credited with an assist, and has since continued with a goal and an assist against Ball State, assists against Maryland, and Rutgers this past weekend.
CAFONE MOVES UP IN RANKS
Natailie Cafone scored three goals this past weekend giving her 59 career goals. Cafone remains ninth all-time in career goals at Iowa. The redshirt senior is three goals behind former Hawkeye Kelly Flanagan (62) for eighth.
NEWCOMERS
The Hawkeyes welcomed back 14 players including seniors, Chandler Ackers, Natalie Cafone, Sophie Plasteras, and Alexandra Pecora. In addition to the returnees, Iowea welcomes five newcomers to 2016 roster, including Katie Birch (MF/D), Ryley Miller (MF), Isabella Solaroli (MF), Leslie Speight (GK), and Sophie Sunderland (MF).
HAWKEYES IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Hawkeyes have been selected to the NCAA Tournament 22 times in program history — the most of any school as a member of the Big Ten Conference. The Hawkeyes are 26-23 all-time in tournament play, including 9-5 in first round match-ups and 11-6 in second round contests. Iowa has advanced to 11 NCAA Final Fours, winning the 1986 national championship. The Hawkeyes’ 26 tournament victories and 11 NCAA Final Fours are the most of any school as a member of the Big Ten Conference.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Hawkeyes are back in action next weekend as they host a pair of nonconference games. The Hawkeyes host Central Michigan on Friday (Oct. 7) at 3 p.m. (CT) and UC Davis on Sunday (Oct. 9) at 1 p.m. (CT) at Grant Field. Admission is free.
LINK UP WITH THE HAWKEYES
For an inside look at the Iowa field hockey program and to access exclusive coverage, “like” The University of Iowa Field Hockey Team on Facebook and follow @IowaFieldHockey on Twitter and Instagram.
