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Iowa Field Hockey falls to Maryland in the Big Ten Quarterfinals

On3 imageby:Kyle Huesmann•11/02/23•

HuesmannKyle

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Photo by Dennis Scheidt

Sports tend to have weird trends that you can’t explain, like, why does a certain team always struggle playing a certain team, when each game is different and have no correlation? For the Iowa Field Hockey team, for whatever reason, playing Maryland away from home has always been tough. The Hawkeyes dropped their Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinal matchup against the Terrapins on Thursday afternoon in Ann Arbor. Iowa is now just 1-13 all-time in neutral/away games against Maryland.

The Hawkeyes entered the game, coming off of a huge 7-2 win against #3 Rutgers on Senior Day. They were hoping to keep the momentum rolling on the offensive side of the field, but the Terrapins defense kept Iowa off the scoreboard. It’s just the second time this season that the Hawkeyes have failed to score a goal. Maryland held Iowa to just six shots and a season-low two shots on goal.

The beginning half of the first quarter was dominated with possession by the Terps. They took the first three shots of the game, but it was the Hawkeyes that closed out the quarter with a near chance. In the waning seconds, on a penalty corner, Dionne van Aalsum had her shot saved by Maryland GK Alyssa Klebasko. Annika Herbine was waiting by the near post for the rebound, but Klebasko closed off the opening just in time.

The Terrapins got on the board in the 21st minute off the stick of forward Hope Rose. Off an Iowa turnover, Maci Bradford got the ball into the circle and fired a shot on net. Rose was waiting in front and redirected the shot between her legs and past GK Mia Magnotta for the opening goal of the game.

A scary moment came in the 25th minute, Maryland defender Maura Verleg caught Esme Gibson just above the eye with her stick. Gibson had blood streaming from her eyebrow and missed the rest of the first half to get it cleaned up. She returned to play in the second half. The play went uncarded, despite meeting the qualifications for a potential red card, which would have meant an ejection. Potentially a game-changing play.

Early in the second half, Maryland threatened to double their lead, but the Iowa defense held strong on a penalty corner. The intial shot from Sammy Popper was saved by Mia Magnotta, but Lieve Schalk’s attempt to clear the ball was stopped by Hannah Boss. Boss returned fire, but Schalk made a stick deflection that likely saved a goal. Maci Bradford missed a shot wide and the Hawkeyes were able to dodge a bullet.

Unfortunately, the Terps added on in the 36th minute. Sammy Popper got a look in the circle and rocketed a shot off the post and in the top half of the goal to make it 2-0. The game went to the fourth quarter, with the Hawkeyes trailing by two goals.

Much like the first matchup in College Park, where Iowa scored 37 seconds into the final quarter, the Hawkeyes put the pressure on right away in the fourth. On a penalty corner opportunity, Dionne van Aalsum sent a shot towards the back post, but no one was home to direct it into the goal, so the ball sailed wide.

That ended up being about it for Iowa. Miranda Jackson put a shot on goal in the 57th minute, but they were unable to get on the board. Maryland outshot Iowa 19-6 and 5-2 in shots on goal. Both teams earned four penalty corners.

Up Next, the Hawkeyes will reset their focus and await their NCAA Tournament regional assignment. The selection show is set for Sunday night at 9:00pm CT and will be live streamed on NCAA.com. The expectation is that Iowa will be assigned to the Evanston Regional, hosted by #1 Northwestern. The exact opponent will depend on how things play out the rest of the weekend, but Harvard and Syracuse are the most likely options.

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