By Michael McCurdy
The Iowa field-hockey team has reached its halfway mark in the season. Sitting at 6-4 overall, 0-3 in the Big Ten, the Hawkeyes must turn the corner if they want to get back in the hunt for the Big Ten crown.
The only problem, though, is the competition this weekend is not to be taken lightly; the Hawkeyers will take on Indiana (6-4) and No. 7 Louisville (9-1).
This week at practice, the Hawkeyes have been trying to improve in areas in which they have been subpar, such as shot-on-goal execution and team passing.
Senior Sophie Plasteras said the games last weekend against Maryland and Rutgers were tough losses, but the team learned what areas they need to work on the most in order to have a successful second half of the season.
“We took a lot of positive things from Maryland, and our effort on Sunday against Rutgers was not up our standard,” Plasteras said. “So, we’re going to take what we learned from Maryland and try to be as cohesive on the field as we can be. Other than that, just executing the basics.”
Today, the Hawkeyes will be in Bloomington, Indiana, taking on the Hoosiers at 2 p.m. The Hoosiers are on a two-game winning streak with wins against Central Michigan and Rutgers.
The Hoosiers have the Big Ten leader in goals, Kate Barber, with 15. So, Iowa head coach Lisa Cellucci said, the team needs to be dialed in defensively in an attempt to limit the number of touches Barber gets.
“We are definitely going to make it a focus to try to limit her touches,“ Cellucci said. “It’s a lot like what other teams do to Natalie [Cafone] every time we play. They also have a lethal forward and outstanding goalkeeper we have to be ready for.”
It will not get any easier on Oct. 2; if anything, the competition gets tougher when Iowa travels to Louisville to play the Cardinals at noon. The Cardinals also have a tough weekend of games, with their first being today against No. 1 Syracuse. The Orange will be the best team the Cardinals have played since a mid-September match against Duke, which they lost, 2-1.
So far, Iowa is 3-1 on the road with wins against such quality teams as Wake Forest, Monmouth, and Kent State. Its lone road loss came at the hands of North Carolina, a top-five team that barely escaped the Hawkeyes.
Up to this point, Iowa has been a true road warrior and hopes to take that confidence into this weekend. Sometimes for teams struggling, all it takes is getting away from the spotlight and picking up some unexpected wins on the road.
Junior JoElla Guagliardo said most teams are getting into the gauntlet of their schedules, so now is the team’s opportune moment to get things back on track.
“Louisville and Indiana are both really aggressive teams; they are both looking for wins, too,” Guagliardo said. “We’re getting into the thick of our schedule, and Indiana is looking to get Big Ten wins, while Louisville is looking to maintain its top-10 ranking. So everyone is going to be coming out with a lot of energy and a lot of fight.”