On Oct. 29, the Hawkeye field-hockey team gets a second chance to play Penn State on its home turf. And this time, winner moves up to the field-hockey tournament semifinals and the loser faces the sudden end of their 2017 season.

“We expect a lot of things from ourselves,” said sophomore Katie Birch. “We want to grab Penn State with a lot of intensity and really take it to them. I mean, last time we were there, we lost 3-0, so I hope we see nothing like that again.”

The last time the Hawkeyes were at University Park, after playing an even 32 minutes, they let Penn State break the stalemate with a penalty corner. The Nittany Lions went on to score two more goals, taking the victory.

At this point in the season, Penn State has a 6-2 Big Ten (14-3 overall) and a national ranking of No. 5.

“Penn State really doesn’t change the way they play,” said head coach Lisa Cellucci. “They’ve played the same way for 20 years, but it works for them. We expect them to put high pressure on our backfield and then, really, to have a potent offensive attack, so we have to make sure we can stop them in transition and not allow them any penalty corners or shots.”

The Hawkeyes will have a tough bet against Penn State’s pressure. Not only does the Nittany Lions’ strategy work, but they’ve got the players to crush their opponents.

Penn State touts junior Moira Putsch, who’s a leader in goals (19), assists (11), and points (49). She leads the Big Ten in goals and goals per game (1.06).

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Penn State also sports junior goalkeeper Jenny Rizzo, who leads the Big Ten in save percentage (.804), is ranked second in shutouts (5), and third in saves (4.80).

“Playing Penn State at Penn State is kind of like a 12th man, but the great thing for us is that we’re going to have a ton of support, a ton of fans in the stands, and [we’re] hopeful that the team will rise to the occasion,” Cellucci said.

Iowa’s offense and defense will definitely need to rise to the occasion. The Hawkeyes have Birch and freshman Maddy Murphy to help with that.

Birch has 13 goals, 64 shots, and 34 points on the season, while Murphy has 11 goals, 33 shots, and 25 points.

Iowa sits at No. 23 with an overall record of 7-10 (3-5 Big Ten). The Hawkeyes have the lowest number of wins this season of any of the ranked teams.

“I think we’ve found ourselves, in the past couple seasons, in a similar spot,” said senior Mallory Lefkowitz. “I think that it’s something that’s been consistent enough that we know how to step it up and really bring it up to another level.”

The Hawkeyes hope to improve their record and keep the season alive against Penn State, and historically speaking, they should have a good shot at doing so.

Iowa just barely leads the overall record against Penn State, 25-24-1. Last time the two faced off in the Big Ten Tournament, the Hawkeyes beat the Nittany Lions, 4-3, in the 2013 semifinals.

As far as the Big Ten goes, Iowa, Penn State, and Michigan are the only schools to win five or more tournament titles. Iowa’s all-time record in this tournament is 29-19, the most wins by any Big Ten school.

But in the present, it’s clearly going to be a battle that Iowa may not come out on top of.

“We’re really excited to be back in Pennsylvania,” Birch said. “We’re going to play our game. Last time, we let Penn State dictate us, we never won, so this time, we’re definitely going to take control of the game. We’re definitely going to play some hockey.”