CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The University of Iowa women’s soccer team cruised to a, 6-0, shutout victory at Northern Iowa on Sunday afternoon. The Hawkeye offense piled on six first half goals to bury the Panthers.
Graduate transfer Caroline Halonen got things rolling in the ninth minute, launching a goal to the top of the net off an assist from junior Kyndal Anderson.
From there, goals came early and often. Sophomore Elle Otto scored in the 15th minute of play, and senior Samantha Cary cashed in three minutes later to put the Hawkeyes ahead, 3-0. Halonen tacked on her second goal of the contest in the 24th minute, and senior Hailey Rydberg converted two minutes later to give the Hawkeyes a, 5-0, advantage.
Rydberg posted a final assist in the 31st minute, setting up freshman Morgan Lietz for a goal to put Iowa up by half a dozen.
The Iowa defense posted its fourth clean sheet of the season as senior Monica Wilhelm added a pair of saves to her season totals. On the offensive side of the ball, the Hawkeyes produced 15 shots, 11 of which were on goal.
HEAR FROM HEAD COACH DAVE DIIANNI
“Winning against an in-state rival is always important to us, and I’m very happy with the teams mentality both in yesterday’s training and today versus UNI. As a group, they wanted to have an aggressive, more engaged presence today, and you saw that come to fruition with the early goals in the first half. Goal scoring is contagious, and once you see the ball hit the back of the next, you start to believe a little more in what is asked of you. We had a killer instinct in the final third to be dangerous. We need to enjoy the win for the next 24 hours, reflect on how it occurred, and turn our attention to getting prepared for Wisconsin on Monday.”
HAWKEYE NOTABLES
- Halonen is the first Iowa player to register multiple goals in a single game this season.
- Iowa’s six goals are two short of the program record for goals in a single game (8)
- The Hawkeyes took 40 shots across two games this week, including 24 shots on goal.
- 90 TRACKER: No Iowa player competed for all 90 minutes of Sunday’s game as ten Hawkeyes subbed in off the bench, including goalkeeper Aubrey Hahn. Six Hawkeyes have played the entirety of at least one game this season, including Sara Wheaton (5), Brooklyn Woods (3), Hailey Rydberg (3), Samantha Cary (3), Josie Durr, and Rielee Fetty.
NEXT UP
Iowa returns home to open Big Ten play against Wisconsin on Sept. 16. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. (CT).