Week 9 Preview: at No. 10/14 Wisconsin, at Minnesota

THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa soccer team will travel north this week for its final two road games of the regular season, beginning with a Thursday night matchup at No. 10/14 Wisconsin at 7 p.m. (CT) at the McClimon Complex.  The Hawkeyes close out the weekend at Minnesota on Sunday, facing the Gophers at 1 p.m. at the Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium. 

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 13 wins are tied for the third-most in a single season in school history. It is the second 13-plus win season under head coach Dave DiIanni. Iowa won 14 games during his first season in 2014.
• Thursday’s game is Iowa’s third game against a ranked opponent this season and it is the first time since 2017 that the Hawkeyes have faced a top 10 team (Penn State, No. 7).
• 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 30th with 14 points.  The Hawkeyes are fourth in the North Region rankings.
• The Hawkeyes lost a tough battle against No. 19/21 Rutgers (1-0) on  Oct. 11, but bounced back to shut out Maryland (4-0). Iowa has exceeded its 2018 Big Ten win total and it is the most league wins for the team since 2014.
• The Hawkeyes have scored a Big Ten-best 39 goals through 16 games. The figure is seventh nationally.

MOVING UP THE CHARTS
Iowa has 13 victories this season, which are tied for the third 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 (2019)
     13 wins (1999)
     13 wins (2011)

DYNAMO DEVIN
Senior Devin Burns has registered a point in nine of Iowa’s 16 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 13 victories in goal this season, which are tied for the second-most in a single season in program history. 
• The Indiana native has posted 7.5 shutouts, a career high.  The figure is third in a single season in program history.
• Graves is 12-3 with a 0.71 goals against average this season.  She has made 30 saves.

OF NOTE…
• Senior Isabella Blackman scored her first goal of the season — a game-winner — in Iowa’s 4-0 Senior Day victory over Maryland.  It was the midfielder’s first goal since the second game of her career — a game-winner in a road win at Missouri in 2016.  
• Sophomore Riley Whitaker scored her second career goal, bending in a strike off a corner kick against the Terrapins.  She is the 16th Hawkeye to score this season.

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 20 in the nation in seven categories.  Iowa is tied for first in penalty kicks (1.000), seventh in goals (39), ninth in points (109), 15th in scoring offense (2.44), 18th in shots on goal per game (8.38), 19th in assists (31), 20th in winning percentage (.813).

B1G LEADERS
• The Hawkeyes are leading the Big Ten in all six offensive categories — goals (39), points (109), shots (262), goals per game (2.38), assists (31), and assists per game (1.94).
• Senior Devin Burns is tied for third in the Big Ten with six goals, while Hannah Drkulec is tied for eighth with five strikes.
• Devin Burns is  eighth in the conference with 39 shots and ninth in shots per game (2.44).  She is also tied for ninth in points (15).
• Senior Natalie Winters is tied for fifth in game-winning goals with three.

IOWA’S DEFENSE HAS…
• allowed seven or fewer shots in 11 of its 16 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 eight shutouts, including back-to-back-to-back against No. 14 NC State, UNC Greensboro, and Northern Colorado.  Four of Iowa’s five Big Ten wins have come via the shutout.

OFFENSIVELY SPEAKING
• Iowa is out-shooting its opposition, 262-101, and the Hawkeyes have an 90-46 advantage in corner kicks. The Hawkeyes have 20 or more shots in six games.
• Nine 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 eight games this season.

I SCORE, YOU SCORE, WE ALL SCORE
The Hawkeyes have scored 39 goals in 16 games (Iowa scored 20 total goals in 2018) and 16 different players have found the back of the net. Seventeen different players have tallied a point this season.
• Iowa has an NCAA-leading 16 different goal scorers in 2019. 
• Freshmen Gianna Gourley, Sara Wheaton, and Samantha Cary, sophomores Samantha Tawharu, Skylar Alward, 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 five 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 15-2-3 dating back to the start of the 2018 season, which includes a 8-2 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 (12 games), Hannah Drkulec (8), Sara Wheaton (8), Samantha Cary (6), and Isabella Blackman (6).

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 12 of 16 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 1,356 total minutes this season, Iowa has only trailed for 117 minutes and 46 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 421 games in their collegiate careers. 
• Iowa has played 72 games since the senior class arrived in 2016.  Nine seniors have appeared in 50 or more games in their careers.
•  Senior Natalie Winters has started 71-of-72 career games and she has appeared in all 72 contests.
•  Hannah Drkulec – 71-of-72 (48 starts); Isabella Blackman – 70-of-72 (62 starts); Claire Graves – 67-of-72 (66 starts), Kaleigh Haus – 68-of-72 (50 starts); Devin Burns – 65-of-72 (52 starts), Olivia Fiegel – 57-of-72 (16 starts); Leah Moss – 55-of-72 (39 starts); Emma Tokuyama – 51-of-72 (4 starts).

GRAVES TIES CAREER WINS RECORD
Senior Claire Graves tied the Iowa school record for career victories with the Hawkeyes’ 4-0 win over Maryland on Oct. 13.  Graves currently ranks in the top-four in three categories — tied for first in career wins (36), second in career shutouts (24.5), and fourth in career saves (221).

Shutouts
1. Hannah Clark, 26
2. Claire Graves, 24.5

Victories
1. Hannah Clark, 36
    Claire Graves, 36

Saves
1. Britta Vogele, 489
2. Emily Moran, 350
3. Hannah Clark, 321
4. Claire Graves, 221

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 WISCONSIN
• The Badgers bring a 10-2-1 overall and 6-0-0 record into Thursday’s game against the Hawkeyes. Wisconsin is leading the Big Ten and is ranked 10th in the United Soccer Coaches Poll and 14th by TopDrawerSoccer.
• The Badgers’ only two losses came at Florida State (1-0, OT) and at UCLA (1-0) and they battled Loyola Chicago to a 1-1 draw.
• Wisconsin has only allowed one goal (at Rutgers) in Big Ten play this season.  The Badgers are currently riding a four-game shutout streak and the team has not allowed a goal during the month of October. 
• Wisconsin is undefeated at home at the McClimon Complex this season. The Badgers last home loss occurred on August 23, 2018, — a 3-0 loss to Florida State.
• Dating back to 2016, Wisconsin has only lost three of its last 39 home games.
• Dani Rhodes leads the Badgers with seven goals, a figure that is tied for fourth in the Big Ten.
• Badger goalkeeper Jordyn Bloomer has played every minute in goal this season, where she has only allowed five goals and has a .875 save percentage with 35 saves.

SCOUTING MINNESOTA
• Minnesota is currently 2-10-3 overall record and 1-5-1 conference record with Nebraska slated to travel to Minneapolis on Thursday. The Gophers’ lone Big Ten win came over Ohio State on Sept. 29 and Minnesota also has a victory over NC State.
• The Gophers have scored just six goals this season from five different players.  Minnesota has been shut out 10 times.
• Minnesota assistant coach Molly Rouse was a Hawkeye assistant during the 2017-18 season.

SERIES RECORDS
• The Badgers lead the all-time series over Iowa, 14-5-3.  Wisconsin has won five of the last six meetings, including four straight — all via the shutout. 
• Iowa and Wisconsin battled to a scoreless draw in Madison in 2014.  The Hawkeyes’ last win came in 2012 by a 2-1 margin.
• Minnesota leads the all-time series over Iowa, 13-4-4.  The Gophers have won the last three meetings in the series.
• Five of the last six meetings have been contested in Minneapolis.  Iowa’s last win came on the road in 2014 — a 1-0 victory.

NEXT UP
Iowa returns home to take on the Ohio State in its regular season finale on Oct. 27 at 1 p.m. Admission is free.