The Iowa field-hockey team will face No. 10 Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament.
By Mario Williams
It’s been a mixed bag for the Iowa field-hockey team this season: losing its best player, only winning two conference games, having to battle toe-to-toe with the best of the best teams across the country.
Today in Bloomington, Indiana, all of that is left behind.
The Hawkeyes will play Michigan at 2 p.m. in the Big Ten Tournament. It’s a new season and a clean slate. If they win the tournament, they earn an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.
“It’s now about winning and advancing one game at a time and proving that we have grown as a team in certain areas,” Iowa head coach Lisa Cellucci said.
The Hawks last competed against No. 7 Maryland, in which many believe they played their best game yet.
Their intentions for the last regular-season game at Grant Field was to battle for everything, and they did just that. Despite coming up short, 2-1, in double overtime, the way they competed against the top dogs in the conference was an improvement over what they had been doing much of the season.
The expectations for the Hawks coming into the matchup were low, but they handled business fairly well. Perhaps the loss might even serve as motivation going into the matchup against the Wolverines.
Michigan’s style of play can be very similar to what the Hawkeyes saw against the Terps. Both teams like to stretch the field and are dangerous with penalty corners. Cellucci believes the way the team competed against Maryland will only give the Hawks confidence against Michigan.
“This gives us good momentum to go in and play a very similar opponent but now on a neutral field,” the second-year head coach said. “The fact that we know we can play against a team that has a lot of speed and stretches the field and that we can hang and still be in it. We just have to find a way to capitalize.” The Wolverines and Hawkeyes are certainly no strangers to one another. The two faced off early this season, and Michigan blew Iowa out the water, 4-0.
The team thought Michigan was very physical and put a lot of pressure on each player. This is also something Iowa has dealt with this season, considering its lack of depth. Michigan outshot Iowa 16-8, as well.
This time around, Cellucci wants her team to defend well, especially on penalty corners. The majority of the Wolverines’ goals come from penalty corners, and two of their goals against the Hawks were scored on penalty corners.
“We will definitely press them differently than we did the first time around,” Cellucci said. “They stretch the field, so we have to attempt to make the field smaller and play more compact on the defensive side of the ball. We need a lot of urgency with our defensive free hit set up inside our 25-yard line so we don’t give away easy goal scoring opportunities.”
With a team as young as Iowa, leadership going into the tournament will be key. One player in particular who has played in the tournament before, junior Chandler Ackers is ready for the next Big Ten battle.
“It’s not really something you can get a grasp of until you’ve really done it,” she said. “It’s do or die on the field until the last second.”
Follow @marioxwilliams for Iowa field-hockey news, updates, and analysis.
