The Hawkeyes take down No. 11 Wake Forest before falling to No. 2 North Carolina.
By Mario Williams
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The Iowa field-hockey team opened the regular season against two highly ranked squads in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.

The Hawkeyes competed against No. 11 Wake Forest on Aug. 29 and No. 2 North Carolina on Sunday.

The team came home with a 1-1 finish, knocking off the Demon Deacons, 2-1, in overtime, then falling short to the Tar Heels, 2-1.

In the first day, the Hawkeyes scored early after a penalty corner in the fifth-minute of the first half from freshman Makenna Grewe.
In the 29th minute of the game, the Demon Deacons tied things up, but Iowa’s defense showed up big, not allowing Wake Forest to score in the second half. The game went into overtime and junior Stephanie Norlander fired a shot into the goal to give the Hawkeyes a 2-1 victory.

“Today’s win was a total team effort,” head coach Lisa Cellucci said in a release. “We stuck to the game plan and found a way to manage the different phases of the game.

“We took a big step forward today, and I am very proud of the team.”

In the second day, things were much different. The Tar Heels led 2-0, heading into the half, but the Hawkeyes scored in the 37th minute of the second half on a goal from junior Chandler Ackers. However, that was all Iowa was able to do and the Tar Heels tiptoed to a win.

The Hawkeyes will be back on the road next weekend as they compete against Richmond on Friday and James Madison on Sept. 6 in Harrisonburg, Virginia.