THIS WEEK
The No. 18 University of Iowa soccer team is set to travel to Columbus, Ohio to take on No. 17. Ohio State on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. (CT). Iowa then stays on the road and travels to Champaign, Ill. to take on Illinois on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
WATCH/FOLLOW LIVE
– Both matches this week will be streamed live on B1G+ (subscription required for both).
– Links to streaming and live stats can be found at the gameday page on hawkeyesports.com.
– Fans can follow the Iowa soccer program on Twitter/X (@HawkeyeSoccer) for live in-game updates.
SCOUTING THE BUCKEYES
– The Buckeyes are 6-1-1 on the season including 1-0-0 in Big Ten Conference Play.
– The Hawkeyes will be the fourth ranked team the Buckeyes have played through nine games. The Buckeyes defeated No. 24 Duke, 1-0. They then forced a tie with No. 21 South Carolina, 1-1. In their most recent ranked matchup Ohio State suffered their first loss of the season, losing to No. 13 Auburn, 0-1.
– Ohio State is led by senior Kailyn Dudukovich with eight goals on the season. Dudukovich is tied for seventh in the country for total goals. Just six division I athletes have more goals than her. Dudukovich has 36 shots on the season with 21 of them on goal (.583). Dudukovich is also 23rd in the country averaging 2.00 points per game.
– Sophomore Amanda Schlueter leads the Buckeyes with four assists on the season, while also scoring five goals. Schlueter is second on the Buckeyes with 28 shots with 12 of them on goal (.429).
– Junior goalkeeper Molly Pritchard has 30 saves on the season with a save percentage of .939. Pritchard’s save percentage is fifth in the country. Pritchard has allowed two goals on the season and has posted three shutouts (Duke, Milwaukee, and Navy).
– The Buckeyes have outshot their opponents 132-75 outscoring them 18-3. The Buckeye defense has now allowed a goal in the first half this season.
SERIES HISTORY – OHIO STATE
The Hawkeyes trail the Buckeyes in the all-time series, 7-17-1. The two teams have split the last two matchups with Iowa winning 2-1 (2OT) in 2019 and the Buckeyes defeating Iowa 2-0 in 2022.
SCOUTING THE FIGHTING ILLINI
– The Fighting Illini are 4-3-1 on the season and 0-1 in Big Ten Conference play, falling to Minnesota, 0-1.
– The Hawkeyes will be the first ranked opponent that Illinois has faced this season.
– Illinois is led by junior forward Sarah Foley with five goals on the season. Foley had 17 shots with 11 of them on goal (.647).
– No other Illinois player has scored over two goals. Two players have two goals while eight have one goal.
– Redshirt sophomore Izzy Lee is the only goalkeeper to register minutes for the Fighting Illini this year. Lee has 43 saves on the season while allowing nine goals. Lee’s save percentage is .827 and averages 1.13 goals allowed per game.
– The Illini have outshot their opponents 113-91 on the season outscoring them 17 to nine.
SERIES HISTORY – ILLINOIS
The Hawkeyes trail the Illini 11-15-3 in the all-time series. The first matchup between the two teams was on Sept. 19, 1997 where Iowa defeated Illinois 2-0 in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes won two-straight before tying the last two matchups. The last time Illinois defeated the Hawkeyes was Feb. 25, 2021.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
– Bush, Enneking and Greer were named Big Ten Players to Watch. The Hawkeyes were ranked eighth in the Big Ten Preseason Poll. Enneking is a United Soccer Coaches national preseason honoree and was named to the Mac Hermann Trophy Watch List
– Millie Greer (#39) and midfielder Sofia Bush (#87) were ranked top-100 freshmen at the end of the season by Top Drawer Soccer.
– Iowa opened the season ranked No. 25 to start the year; that was the first preseason ranking in program history. The Hawkeyes earned their first postseason ranking last fall, checking in at No. 24 to finish the year. Iowa peaked at No. 14 in the national polls last season, another all-time best. The Hawkeyes are currently ranked No. 18 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll and No. 20 in the Top Drawer Soccer Poll. Iowa is currently ranked #12 in the NCAA’s RPI (Rating Percentage Index).
– The Hawkeyes are currently sitting on a five-game winning streak after drawing two consecutive matches at the beginning of the season (Western Michigan and Texas).
– Iowa is currently averaging 18.62 shots per game which rankings 32nd in the country. The Hawkeye’s then average 9.88 shots per game which ranks 10th in the country and first amongst Big Ten teams.
– Iowa’s six wins are the most wins without a loss to start a season since the Hawkeyes started 9-0 in the 2019 season.
– Enneking, Johnston and graduate-student Rielee Fetty were voted team captains.
LAST WEEK
The Hawkeyes matched up with rivals Iowa State and Nebraska, defeating them both, and didn’t allow a goal against either team. The Hawkeyes opened last week with Nebraska in Iowa City. Sophomore Sophia Bush scored a goal in the 64th minute after a scoreless first half to give Iowa a 1-0 lead. Senior Meike Ingles then struck late, scoring a goal in the 80th minute to give the Hawkeyes a 2-0 victory over the Cornhuskers. The Hawkeyes then traveled to Ames to take on the Cyclones in the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Rivalry. Ingles struck again scoring first to give the Hawkeyes a 1-0 advantage in the 22nd minute. Graduate student Maya Hansen then pushed the Hawkeye lead to 2-0 in the 29th minute scoring her second goal of the season. Freshman Berit Parten then added a dagger goal in the 82nd minute to push the Hawkeye lead to 3-0. Iowa defeated rival Iowa State for their second consecutive year.
DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
Iowa has allowed just two goals so far this season. The two goals came in the Hawkeyes first two games of the season (Colorado College and Western Michigan).
– Iowa has posted six consecutive shutouts. The Hawkeyes are allowing 0.25 goals per game which is tied for seventh in the country.
– The Hawkeyes saves percentage of .920 is tied for 11th in the nation.
– Iowa’s shutout percentage of .750 is tied for ninth in the country. Just three times have posted more shutouts this season than Iowa (No. 12 Oklahoma St., No. 6 Auburn, and College of Charleston).
– Last time out vs. Iowa State the Hawkeyes allowed just two shots with none on goal. The last time the Hawkeyes didn’t allow a shot on goal was on Sept. 3, 2023, against Southeast Missouri State.
– The Hawkeyes six-consecutive shutouts is the most consecutive shutouts in the history of the program.
A KEEPER!
Goalkeeper Macy Enneking set a program record for shutouts last season (12.5), tying for fifth nationally.
– The Hilliard, Ohio, native has started all five years at Iowa, anchoring the team to two NCAA Tournament appearances and a pair of conference tournament championships.
– Enneking is the first Hawkeye named to the Mac Hermann Trophy Watch List and the first Iowa player featured on the United Soccer Coaches Players to Watch List.
– Enneking has allowed just two goals on the season and is yet to allow a goal in the second half.
– Enneking became the first Hawkeye to win Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Week three times in a career and also the first Hawkeye to win the award in back-to-back weeks.
– Enneking has 27.5 career shutouts, passing former Hawkeye Hannah Clark (2012-15). Enneking needs eight victories to tie the all-time school record for career victories.
– Enneking’s save percentage of .917 is tied for 14th in the country.
SINCE 2019, IOWA…
– Won both Big Ten Tournament Championships in program history (2021, 2023)
– Won each of two NCAA Tournament victories in program history
– Made three of four NCAA Tournament appearances in program history
– Has earned 10 postseason wins
– Has posted 47 shutouts
– Defeated eight ranked opponents, six top-15 opponents and two top-five opponents
– Saw Coach DiIanni surpass 300 career wins and become the winningest coach in program history
– Set a new home attendance record (2,629); the overtime win over Bucknell was the first NCAA Tournament game hosted at the Iowa Soccer Complex
FRESHMAN SENSATION
– Berit Parten has scored a goal in four of the last five games. Parten has scored five goals across those four games (FGCU, No. 18 Wake Forest, Baylor, and Iowa State).
– Parten leads Iowa in goals, points, shots, and shots on goal.
– Parten was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week earlier this season. Parten was the 12th Hawkeye to be named Freshman of the Week and the first Hawkeye to win the award since Kenzie Roling in 2021.
– Parten’s 3.5 shots per game leads the team and is tied for 57th amongst all players in the nation.
2 FOR THE MONEY
Iowa’s record is 49-2-3 in its last 54 games when scoring two goals or more, which dates back to October of 2017. The Hawkeyes are 6-0 this year in multi-goal games.
90 TRACKER
– Sofia Bush, Rielee Fetty, Eva Pattison, Miah Schueller, and Millie Greer all registered 90 minutes against Nebraska. 16 Hawkeyes got playing time against the Cornhuskers.
– Senior Miah Schueller was the lone Hawkeye position player to play 90 minutes against the Cyclones. 21 Hawkeyes registered minutes in the 3-0 victory over Iowa State.
UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes host Penn State on Sept. 26th at 7:00 p.m. (CT) at Iowa Soccer Complex. The Hawkeyes then travel to Evanston, Ill. to take on Northwestern at 1:00 p.m. Both games will be streamed lived on B1G+.
