On Friday, the Iowa women’s soccer team will kick off its NCAA Tournament run with a home match against Patriot League Champion Bucknell.

The Bison won the Patriot League Tournament three straight years, entering the match against the Hawkeyes on a nine-game unbeaten streak, winning six and tying three.

Bucknell finished the season with 12 wins, good enough for the two-seed in the Patriot League Tournament.

In the final of the Patriot League Tournament, the Bison beat the Army Golden Knights in penalty kicks after Bucknell’s goalkeeper, Jenna Hall, made 13 saves during regulation and overtime. She then made three more saves in the penalty shootout to lead the Bison to the tournament win.

Afterward, Hall was named tournament MVP and named goalkeeper of the year by the Patriot League. Team points leader Teresa Deda was named the league’s midfielder of the year after scoring nine and assisting on nine goals this season. It was Deda’s second time earning the honor, the only Patriot League midfielder to ever win the award more than once.

Bucknell is no stranger to Big Ten opponents — the Bison have played a team from the Big Ten in six of their seven NCAA appearances, including the last three. It will be the first meeting between Iowa and Bucknell.

“Bucknell made it to the NCAA tournament, so they’re clearly good at something. So going into the game without underestimating them is a huge thing for us,” Iowa senior goalkeeper Macy Enneking said. “I’m not too worried about our team doing that because we ourselves have been underestimated so much, so we’ve kind of learned not to do that to other teams.”

Veteran midfielder Josie Durr said the Hawkeyes aren’t taking Bucknell lightly and are preparing the same way for the Bison that they did for Michigan State, Penn State, and Wisconsin during the Big Ten Tournament.

Durr added the team hopes to build on its momentum and carry its current success to the game against Bucknell, they just have to move past the highs they experienced the week before and “get back to work.”

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One area Iowa was successful in during the team’s run in the Big Ten Tournament was defense. The Hawkeyes allowed just one goal over three games against three-straight ranked opponents, including a top-five opponent in Penn State.

“There’s 64 division one women’s soccer teams playing right now, everyone else is done and at home,” fifth-year defender Samantha Cary said. “Whether you’re coming in as a number one seed, or you know, someone like Bucknell who’s from a mid-major, you’re going to be good, and you’re going to want it.”