The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

Field-hockey tourney set to begin

Iowa+fullback+Veronique+Declercq+fights+for+the+ball+at+Grant+Field+on+Saturday%2C+Oct.+31%2C+2015.+Iowa+fell+to+Maryland%2C+2-1%2C+in+double+overtime.+%28The+Daily+Iowan%2FRachael+Westergard%29
Iowa fullback Veronique Declercq fights for the ball at Grant Field on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015. Iowa fell to Maryland, 2-1, in double overtime. (The Daily Iowan/Rachael Westergard)

A look inside the teams that will compete at this year’s Big Ten Tournament in Bloomington, Indiana.

By Mario Williams
[email protected]

No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 7 Iowa

There’s no surprise that the Hawkeyes have struggled this season against Big Ten opponents, simply because of their lack of depth. The Hawkeyes will take the seventh seed this year against Michigan.

However, against No. 1 Maryland on Oct. 31, Iowa played much better than what the record indicates. The expectations going into that game were very low for the Hawks considering how much of a dominant force the Terps are in the Big Ten. The game went into double overtime, but Maryland did come on top, 2-1.

After seeing how Iowa competed against Maryland, the loss gives the team a lot of confidence going into the matchup against Michigan. Iowa head coach Lisa Cellucci said the team’s efforts against Maryland should prepare them against the Wolverines, because its style of play is quite similar.

Although the Wolverines defeated the Hawkeyes, 4-0, earlier this season, it wouldn’t be completely surprising if Iowa manages to pull off an upset.

No. 4 Northwestern vs. No. 5 Ohio State

These two teams met a few weeks ago at Ohio State, and the Wildcats came on top, 2-0. Both squads have a lot of depth and are so close as far as being ranked in the tournament.

This game may go very similar to when the teams played earlier this year, but it’ll be interesting to see if the Wildcats can execute on the number of shots they take. In its last matchup, Northwestern took 29 shots and held the Buckeyes to just 2. Northwestern has taken 360 shots this season, good for second in the Big Ten.

The majority of those shots have come from Dominique Masters, who has 109 this season, first in the conference. If Ohio State doesn’t defend Masters well enough, she might have herself a great day.

No. 1 Maryland vs. No. 8 Michigan State

Maryland is hot right now. That’s just as simple as it gets. The Terps were conference champs last season, and it wouldn’t be a shock if that were the case this time around, too. They are 8-0 in the conference and excel in every area on the stat sheet.

The Spartans haven’t had much success this season, seeing as they are the eighth-seeded squad in the tournament. These two met on Sept. 27, and the Terps dumped Michigan State, 5-1.

Maryland may have played a subpar game against Iowa, but if it continues to compete at the rate it has all season, this will be an easy win against a fairly bad Michigan State team.

No. 3 Indiana vs. No. 6 Penn State

When these two met on Oct. 18, the Hoosiers came on top in a tight game, 1-0. Penn State is a quality opponent with a lot of depth. The Nittany Lions outshot Indiana 17-12 in this matchup, and it was a close game all the way to the final gun.

If Penn State defends  aswell as it has this season, it could be one of the surprises of the tournament.

Follow @marioxwilliams for Iowa field hockey news, updates, and analysis.

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