Hawk Talk Monthly — October | Fight For Iowa
IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa sophomore Claire Graves has been named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, it was announced Tuesday by the league office. It is the first honor of Graves’ career.
The goalkeeper from Noblesville, Indiana, earned the distinction after posting back-to-back shutouts in Hawkeye victories over No. 23 Rutgers and Maryland. The win over the Scarlet Knights was Graves’ first collegiate victory over a ranked opponent and Iowa’s first since 2014.
Graves made five saves in the 1-0 win over Rutgers and four stops in a 4-0 victory over Maryland. She is 7-5-1 with 42 saves and five shutouts in 2017.
Graves is the second Hawkeye sophomore to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors this season. Forward Devin Burns earned co-offensive honors on Sept. 5.
Iowa returns to action Thursday, facing Indiana at 6:30 p.m. (CT) in Bloomington. The game will be streamed via BTN Plus on BTN2Go.
