Week 8 Preview: No. 19/21 Rutgers, Maryland

THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa soccer team will host two games this weekend at the Iowa Soccer Complex, beginning with a Friday Alumni Night matchup against No. 19/21 Rutgers at 7 p.m. (CT).  The Hawkeyes will then host Maryland on Senior Day Sunday at 1 p.m.  Admission is free to both contests.

WATCH/FOLLOW LIVE
• Both games will be streamed online via BTN+ — a paid subscription service.
• Live stats for both contests will be available on hawkeyesports.com.
• Fans can follow the Iowa soccer program on Twitter (@HawkeyeSoccer) for live game updates.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
• Iowa’s 12-win are tied for the fifth most in a single season in school history. It is the second 12-plus win season under head coach Dave DiIanni. Iowa won 14 games during his first season in 2014.
• The Hawkeyes are welcoming their first ranked foe to Iowa City since 2017 when No. 19 Rutgers comes to the ISC on Friday. Iowa downed No. 23 Rutgers, 1-0, on Oct. 5, 2017.
• Iowa tied a school record, winning its first nine games of the 2019 season.  The Hawkeyes also started 9-0-0 in 2013.  
• Hannah Drkulec was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week and Gianna Gourley was tabbed as the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Oct. 8.  It was Iowa’s fifth and sixth weekly honor of the season — the most in school history.
• Iowa is receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches poll, sitting 27th with 45 points.  The Hawkeyes are fourth in the North Region rankings.
• The Hawkeyes posted back-to-back shutouts, downing Nebraska (1-0) and winning at Michigan State (3-0) last week to improve to 12-2 overall, 4-2 in Big Ten play.  Iowa has matched its 2018 Big Ten win total and it is the most league wins for the team since 2014.
• Iowa had the highest ranking in school history, coming in at No. 19 by United Soccer Coaches on Sept. 17 and 21st by TopDrawerSoccer on Sept. 16.
• The Hawkeyes have scored a Big Ten-best 35 goals through 14 games. The figure is tied for fifth nationally.
• Iowa is 2-0-0 this season against ACC foes, defeating No. 14 NC State, 1-0, on Sept. 6 and Notre Dame, 3-2, on Sept. 15. The victory over the Wolfpack was the team’s third-highest rated opponent Iowa has defeated in school history.

SENIOR DAY SUNDAY
The Hawkeyes will honor 13 seniors during a pregame ceremony Sunday prior to the game against Maryland.  Iowa will recognize Bianca Acuario, Isabella Blackman, Sydney Blitchok, Devin Burns, Hannah Drkulec, Olivia Fiegel, Claire Graves, Kaleigh Haus, Cora Meyers, Leah Moss, Zoey Slettehaugh, Emma Tokuyama, and Natalie Winters.

MOVING UP THE CHARTS
Iowa has 12 victories this season, which are tied for the fifth most in a single season in program history.  The Hawkeyes won a school-record 15 games in 2013, the year the program made its first NCAA Tournament appearance.

1. 15 wins (2013)
2. 14 wins (2014)
3. 13 wins (2011)
    13 wins (1999)
5. 12 wins (2019)
    12 wins (2012)

DYNAMO DEVIN
Senior Devin Burns has registered a point in nine of Iowa’s 14 games this season.  She scored her team-leading sixth goal in the Hawkeyes’ 3-0 win over Michigan State on Oct. 6, giving her 20 goals for her career.  The total is sixth all-time in program history.
• Iowa is 16-0-1 in games in which Burns has scored in her career.

GRAVES GETS IT DONE
• Senior Claire Graves has posted 11 victories in goal this season, which are tied for the third-most in a single season in program history. 
• The Indiana native has posted seven shutouts, tying her career high.  The figure is tied for third in a single season in program history and ranks 14th nationally.
• Graves is 11-1 with a 0.74 goals against average this season.  She has made 24 saves.

DRKULEC DOES IT ALL
Senior Hannah Drkulec earned her fourth Big Ten weekly honor of the season Oct. 8 when she was tabbed the league’s Defensive Player of the Week.  Drkulec keyed an Iowa defense that posted back-to-back shutouts of Nebraska and Michigan State and she scored the game-winning goal in East Lansing.
• Drkulec was previously named Defensive Player of the Week on Aug. 27 and Sept. 10 and she tabbed as the Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 17 following her first career two-goal game in the road win at Notre Dame. 
• Drkulec became the third Big Ten student-athlete all-time to garner Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week honors in the same season (Lisa Grubb, Ohio State, 2001; Izzy Rodriguez, Ohio State, 2018).  
• Drkulec’s four weekly honors match Britta Vogele for the most in a single-season in school history.
• The defender was also named to TopDrawerSoccer’s National Team of the Week on Sept. 17.
• Drkulec has a career-high five goals in 2019. She scored her second career game-winning goal in the road win at Michigan State on Oct. 6.

A PROGRAM FIRST
The Hawkeyes debuted in the United Soccer Coaches poll on Sept. 17, coming in at No. 19.  It was Iowa’s highest ranking in school history and the first time the program has been in the United Soccer Coaches poll (previously NSCAA).  
• Iowa also joined TopDrawerSoccer’s Top 25 for the first time since 2014, when the Hawkeyes were ranked 25th.  

ADDITIONAL HAWKEYE HONOREES
• Senior Claire Graves was named the Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Week on Sept. 10 after posting back-to-back shutouts of No. 14 NC State and UNC Greensboro.  She was also named honorable mention on TopDrawerSoccer’s National Team of the Week on Sept. 10.
• Freshman Gianna Gourley was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Oct. 8 after scoring the game-winning goal in the home win over Nebraska.

AMONG THE NATION’S BEST
The Hawkeyes rank among the top 15 in the nation in three categories.  Iowa is tied for first in penalty kicks (1.000), tied for fifth in goals (35), and eighth in points (98).  
• Senior Natalie Winters is tied for 36th nationally with three game-winning goals and first in penalty kicks (1.000, 3-for-3).

B1G LEADERS
• The Hawkeyes are leading the Big Ten in all six offensive categories — goals (35), points (98), shots (237), goals per game (2.50), assists (28), and assists per game (2.00).
• Senior Devin Burns is tied for fourth in the Big Ten with six goals, while Hannah Drkulec is tied for fifth with five goals.
• Devin Burns is sixth in the conference with 36 shots and eighth in shots per game (2.57).  She is also tied for fifth in points (15).
• Senior Natalie Winters is tied for second in game-winning goals with three.

IOWA’S DEFENSE HAS…
• allowed seven or fewer shots in 10 of its 14 games.  Iowa allowed just two shots in three games — wins over Western Michigan, Northern Iowa, and Northern Colorado — and three shots in the road loss at Purdue.
• posted seven shutouts, including back-to-back-to-back against No. 14 NC State, UNC Greensboro, and Northern Colorado.  Three of Iowa’s four Big Ten wins have been shutouts.

OFFENSIVELY SPEAKING
• Iowa is out-shooting its opposition, 237-86, and the Hawkeyes have an 81-40 advantage in corner kicks. The Hawkeyes have 20 or more shots in six games.
• Eight different Hawkeyes have scored a game-winning goal this season, including career firsts from: Hannah Drkulec, Gianna Gourley, Samantha Tawharu, Emma Tokuyama, and Sara Wheaton.
• The Hawkeyes have scored three or more goals in seven games this season, including three in four straight contests for the first time since the 2016 season.

I SCORE, YOU SCORE, WE ALL SCORE
The Hawkeyes have scored 35 goals in 14 games (Iowa scored 20 total goals in 2018) and 14 different players have found the back of the net. Sixteen different players have tallied a point this season.
• Iowa is tied for the national lead with 14 different goal scorers with Louisiana Tech.
• Freshmen Gianna Gourley, Sara Wheaton, and Samantha Cary, sophomores Samantha Tawharu, Skylar Alward, and Jenny Cape, and senior Emma Tokuyama have scored their first career goals this season.  
• Iowa scored six goals in its 6-1 victory over Northern Iowa on Aug. 25 — the most for the program since 2017.  The six goals (and six assists in the game) are tied for the most in a single game in the Big Ten this season.

DOWN GOES NO. 14
• The Hawkeyes’ 1-0 victory at No. 14 NC State was the program’s third-highest ranked victory in its history and the highest ranked opponent since 2013.  
• Iowa defeated No. 7 Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals in 2013. The program also knocked off 12th-ranked Wisconsin in 1999.

PERFECT PK
Senior Natalie Winters has scored four goals — with three coming on penalty kicks.  She is a perfect 7-for-7 in her career in penalty kicks.

HOME COOKIN’ AT THE ISC
The Hawkeyes home unbeaten streak came to an end Sept. 29 in an overtime loss to Northwestern. Iowa was riding a 16-game unbeaten streak that dated back to Oct. 21, 2017.  
• Iowa is 14-1-3 dating back to the start of the 2018 season, which includes a 7-1 record at home this season. 

HAWKEYE TIDBITS
• The Hawkeyes are 5-1 on the road this season, a year after going 1-7-0 away from Iowa City. 
• Iowa posted a 1-0 road win at Indiana in its Big Ten Conference opener.  It was the Hawkeyes first victory in a league opener since 2014 and the first on the road in school history.

90-MINUTE CLUB
Iowa has five position players that are a part of the 90-minute club.  The club includes: Riley Whitaker (11 games), Hannah Drkulec (7), Sara Wheaton (7), Samantha Cary (6), and Isabella Blackman (5).

QUICK ATTACK
• The Hawkeyes’ offense has come out fast, scoring in the game’s first seven minutes in four contests — (UNI (6:58), Illinois State (0:47), UNC Greensboro (3:52), Northern Colorado (6:09).
• Iowa has scored first in 11 of 14 games this season.  The Hawkeyes fell behind in the road win at Notre Dame, but responded by scoring three times in a 10-minute stretch in the 3-2 victory.
• Out of 1,266 total minutes this season, Iowa has only trailed for 56 minutes and 39 seconds.

EXPERIENCE GALORE
• The Hawkeyes boast a roster featuring 12 seniors and 14 total upperclassmen.  The 12 seniors are believed to be the most by a team in the nation.
• The 12 seniors have combined to start 410 games in their collegiate careers. 
• Midfielder Natalie Winters has started 71 of 72 games as a Hawkeye, Claire Graves has started 64 contests, and Isabella Blackman has started 62 games.

GRAVES CLIMBING IOWA RECORD BOOKS
Senior Claire Graves currently ranks in the top-four in three career categories in Iowa history.  The Indiana native is second in career shutouts (24), tied for second in career victories (35), and fourth in career saves (215).

Shutouts
1. Hannah Clark, 26
2. Claire Graves, 24

Victories
1. Hannah Clark, 36
2. Claire Graves, 35
     Emily Moran, 35

Saves
1. Britta Vogele, 489
2. Emily Moran, 350
3. Hannah Clark, 321
4. Claire Graves, 215

BURNS AMONG CAREER LEADERS
• Senior Devin Burns has scored six goals during the 2019 season, giving her 20 career goals, which are the sixth-most in school history.  Linzy Wolman is fifth with 21 goals.
• Burns is also tied for third all-time with nine career game-winning goals.
• She currently has 52 career points, which is tied with Bri Toelle (52) for sixth place all-time.

HAWKEYE TIDBITS
• The Hawkeyes were picked to finish 10th in the Big Ten preseason poll.
• Seniors Hannah Drkulec and Isabella Blackman were voted the Hawkeyes’ team captains for the 2019 season.

SCOUTING RUTGERS
• The Scarlet Knights bring a 9-2-1 overall and 3-2-0 Big Ten record into Friday’s game against Iowa.  Rutgers is ranked 19th by TopDrawerSoccer and 21st in the United Soccer Coaches poll.
• Rutgers has won back-to-back games over at Penn State (3-2) and at home over Northwestern (2-0) after suffering back-to-back home losses.  The Scarlet Knights fell to Wisconsin and Maryland by the score of 2-1.
• Rutgers is 2-0-1 on the road this season.
• Nine different Scarlet Knight players have scored with Amirah Ali leading the way with seven goals (four game-winners) and three assists, while Nneka Moneme has six goals. Ali and Moneme are fourth and fifth in the league in goals.
• Meagan McClelland has played all but 14:22 in goal, where she has made 42 saves, posted a 0.64 goals against average, and tallied six shutouts.  Rutgers has only allowed two goals in the second half or OT this season.

SCOUTING MARYLAND
• The Terrapins have won three of their last four games to improve to 7-4-2 overall and 3-2 in Big Ten play heading into Friday’s game at Nebraska.  Maryland erupted for six goals in a 6-2 win over Illinois on Oct. 6.  
• Nine different Maryland players have scored with Alyssa Poarch leading the way with eight goals — third-most in the Big Ten.  
• Three players have seen time in goal. Erin Seppi has posted a 1.42 goals against average while making 45 saves. Maryland hasn’t posted a shutout in 13 games.

SERIES RECORDS
• The Hawkeyes are 3-3-0 all-time against Rutgers. Iowa lost 2-1 in double overtime last season in Piscataway.  Iowa won 1-0 over the 23rd-ranked Scarlet Knights in 2017.
• Iowa is 2-2-0 all-time against Maryland.  The Hawkeyes lost 4-0 last season in College Park.  Iowa won the last meeting in Iowa City, 4-0, in 2017.

NEXT UP
Iowa travels to Madison to face Big Ten-leading Wisconsin on Oct. 17.