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

Lefkowitz vital for field hockey

Iowa+forward+Mallory+Lefkowitz+and+Kent+State+midfielder+Jessica+Nesbitt+run+down+the+field+at+Grant+Field+on+Saturday%2C+Sept.+12%2C+2015.+The+Hawkeyes+defeated+the+Golden+Flashes+7-1.+%28The+Daily+Iowan%2FValerie+Burke%29
The Daily Iowan
Iowa forward Mallory Lefkowitz and Kent State midfielder Jessica Nesbitt run down the field at Grant Field on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2015. The Hawkeyes defeated the Golden Flashes 7-1. (The Daily Iowan/Valerie Burke)

By Michael McCurdy

[email protected]

This upcoming weekend, the Iowa women’s field-hockey team will go on the road to take on two of the top-dogs in the Big Ten — No. 9 Northwestern and No. 12 Michigan.

Senior Alexandra Pecora is focused on carrying the team’s momentum from the previous weekend into this roadblock.

“The stakes are as high as ever; it’s two great opportunities this weekend for wins,” she said.  “We’re going to take each game one at a time and every practice one at a time.  So, we’re not looking too far ahead, but these definitely are two big opportunities for us.”

In order for the Hawkeyes to come away from the weekend victorious, their offense is going to have to work well together. That all starts with the play of junior Mallory Lefkowitz. 

Lefkowitz is a midfielder/forward, and she has played a vital role in the offense this year — creating shots for other players, such as senior Natalie Cafone.  She is no stat-sheet stuffer, but Lefkowitz said she is willing to take on any role her team needs. 

“Yeah, I definitely like doing what I can to help generate offense, even if it means me being a couple of passes away from the ball and from there I always try to affect the play somehow,” Lefkowitz said.

This is Lefkowitz’s third year with the program, but in her state of mind, she has been a part of the Iowa family for much longer.  Iowa head coach Lisa Cellucci said she has known the Pennsylvania native Lefkowitz for a long time because of her connection to former Iowa field hockey All-American Caroline Blaum.

“We recruit in the northeast Pennsylvania area a lot, and we had a former All-American who went here for field hockey and she also went to Mallory’s high school,” Cellucci said.  “So we have known Mallory for quite some time, and we have a great relationship with her high-school coach.  She came to a lot of our camps in northeastern Pennsylvania, like Chandler Ackers, and from there we saw right away she was going to be a great fit.”

Lefkowitz said she was attracted to Iowa through her previous knowledge, but really fell in love with the school after she visited Iowa City.

Cellucci has been pleased with Lefkowitz’s performance over the past three years, but this year the growth has really become apparent.  It has been a different season so far for Lefkowitz because with the lack of depth and recent injuries, Cellucci has had to put her in different positions throughout the season.

“By the position she plays, you’re not going to see her much in the stat column, but she is definitely vital to the team,” Cellucci said.  “She does a tremendous job executing her fundamentals first and foremost, and she can go and go and go.  So, a little bit like how Melissa Progar is our deep-midfield engine, Mallory is our engine on the attack. 

“She has been doing a great job because we have asked her to play some different spots and she has been very flexible, and she does a really good job distributing in the midfield.” 

Follow @MMccurd for more information on the Iowa field-hockey team.

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