Iowa Field Hockey defeats #18 Wake Forest in a penalty shootout
There’s nothing quite like a dramatic penalty shootout to provide a thrilling start to the field hockey season. Following an 80-minute scoreless draw, the Hawkeyes and Demon Deacons were forced to settle the match in a shootout. It’s the second time in three seasons where the matchup has yielded an overtime or shootout finish.
In the fifth round of attempts, Hawkeye GK Mia Magnotta turned aside the shot attempt from Ashley Hart, setting the stage for the Hawkeyes to win it. Dionne van Aalsum, last season’s top goalscorer, took her run up, went to her right and and struck the ball past Wake Forest’s goalkeeper Ellie Todd, hitting the inside far post to secure a 3-2 shootout win.
Penalty Shootout Summary
WAKE FOREST: Storey (N), Montag (N), Janse (Y), Schoenbeck (Y), Hart (N)
IOWA: A. Herbine (N), McGroarty (N), Dunne (Y), Jackson (Y), van Aalsum (Y)
The first half was almost entirely quiet, with minimal offensive threats from either side. Wake Forest recorded the lone shot in the first quarter, while the entire first half saw only six total shots.
Iowa made a push in the closing minutes of the half, with a pair of penalty corner opportunities, but were unable to find the back of the goal. Their best chance came in the 29th minute, off the stick of Dionne van Aalsum on one of those two corners. Her direct shot from the top of the circle was saved by Ellie Todd, with the ball eventually making its way to Alex Wesneski. She sent a shot towards Annika Herbine at the back post, but it skipped past her stick and out of play.
The Hawkeyes nearly broke through early in the second half, with a chance in the 40th minute. Dionne van Aalsum rolled pass into the circle and it appeared to redirect off of the stick of freshman Hannah Maxey for a goal. However, upon further review, the redirect was off of the pad of GK Ellie Todd, meaning it was a shot from outside the circle that found the back of the goal.
Late in the fourth quarter, it was Wake Forest celebrating a goal, looking like they had taken the lead. However, defender Milly Short immediately signaled for a referral and the goal was disallowed after a review.
In overtime, both teams had penalty corner opportunities, including three from Wake Forest, but neither ten-minute period had a goal, sending the game to a shootout. The Hawkeyes have won three of their last four games that have gone to a penalty shootout.
The Hawkeyes outshot the Demon Deacons 13-7, including 6-2 in shots on goal. Dionne van Aalsum led the way with seven shot attempts, while Mia Magnotta saved both shots that she faced. Iowa has now won 12 of the last 14 meetings against Wake Forest, including six in a row dating back to 2018.
Up next, the Hawkeyes will take on the second-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in their finale of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge on Sunday. The game is set to start at 10:00am CT on BTN+.
