Iowa Field Hockey Preview: Defending Half

Iowa Field Hockey has always been known for their strong defense. During the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, the Hawkeyes routinely had one of the best defenses in the country. Over the last five seasons, Lisa Cellucci’s team has returned to that level and even gave themselves the ‘Great Wall of Iowa’ nickname back in 2018. Dating back to that 2018 season, opponents have struggled to score goals against the stout Hawkeye defense. How much have they struggled? Over the last 101 games, Iowa has allowed just 101 goals, including 70 games where opponents scored one goal or less.

This season, the Hawkeyes will be tasked with replacing Anthe Nijziel, Lokke Stribos and GK Grace McGuire. The three combined for 259 starts over their Iowa Field Hockey careers. The back half of the Iowa starting lineup is set to have a new look, but the expectations do not change.

Defenders

Projected Starters: Soph Milly Short, Sr Harper Dunne, tFr Lauren DeRose

Bench: Sr Mary Jane McNary

Anthe Nijziel and Lokke Stribos both started every single game of the course of their five-year careers at Iowa. Nijziel was a two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and a three-time First Team All-American, while Stribos was a two-time All-Big Ten selection. There is no arguing that they are big losses.

“We tried to see if we could get Anthe or Lokke a sixth year and put them in a different hair style,” said head coach Lisa Cellucci. “Thost are two humongous losses. They were unbelievable for five years, just their skillset and what they brought.”

“Our defense has always been a hallmark of Iowa Field Hockey…it’s just going to look a little bit different, which we’re excited about because it gives us a chance to play a little bit different style. We’re going to be able to go forward a little bit faster. We’re just going to have to play a little smaller rather than the 60-70 yard pass Anthe and Lokke provided.”

The new captain of the Hawkeye defense is sophomore Milly Short. Out of Worcester, England, Short was injured for the majority of last season, but played in the final six games last season and logged two starts. Although she would have rather been on the field, her injury allowed her to watch film, observe from the sideline during games and learn the college game from two veterans.

“I learned a lot of perspective being on the sideline. It was not the ideal situation, but it gave me the chance to sort of observe, see what would happen, so when I did get into the situation, I was more prepared,” said Short. “From both of them, (I learned) composure on the ball. They’re both very good at their long game, so looking not just the line ahead of me, but two lines in front trying to play those longer passes and then just their command of the defense. Getting organized and getting set.”

“I think Milly gained a lot of confidence throughout the spring,” said midfielder Esme Gibson. “For her coming into her role as centerback, leading the field and communicating, she’s definitely grown in confidence.”

The other newcomer to the starting lineup is true freshman Lauren DeRose out of Collegeville, PA. She was a top 50 rated recruit by MAX Field Hockey out of high school and spent the summer in Iowa City working with the returning players. Valuable practice time, as she prepares for her first ever college game.

“She’s poised, she’s very confident. She has a great fundamental skillset and really organzies well,” said Lisa Cellucci. “What’s been fantastic is she’s just adaptable with the play and she’s fit in perfectly, so she’s going to see a lot of time this year.”

“She’s really open to learning. She’s just absorbing everything that we throw at her, which can be a lot sometimes, but she’s doing great,” said GK Mia Magnotta. “I’m really excited to play with her and just see where the season goes.”

While all the talk is about Milly Short and Lauren DeRose, Harper Dunne is a returning starter for the defense. She is entering her fourth year as a starter for the Hawkeyes and provides much needed shot of stability and experience to the group. Harper has played the full 60 minutes in 33 of the teams 40 games over the last two years. If the gameplan requires it, or injuries become a factor, midfielders Lieve Schalk and Esme Gibson could drop to the back end of the formation.

Goalkeeper

Projected Starters: rSoph Mia Magnotta

Bench: tFr Allie Curry

It’s not very often that you lose a three-year starter and an All-American at a position and feel comfortable about the spot going into the next year. Yet, that’s exactly how the Hawkeyes feel about the situation at goalkeeper this season. After starting the last three games of the season, Mia Magnotta returns to be the full-time starter in goal as a redshirt sophomore.

“It was huge just to see her have the confidence to step in,” said Coach Cellucci. “Sure, there were some nerves, but to rise to the occasion in that moment, we’re like, oh here we go, we know we have a goalkeeper we can count on for the next three years.”

With Grace McGuire on the sideline with a back injury, Magnotta was forced into action for her first career starts after redshirting her true freshman year. In two NCAA Tournament games against Virginia and Northwestern, she made saves on six of eight shots faced and also saved six penalty shootout attempts. It was just a couple of games, but it was enough to show that it should be a seamless transition at goalkeeper for the Hawkeyes.

“Those games were pretty high stakes, so being able to play with players last year and the same players that we have this year, it’s just built the chemistry and I’m going to continue to build it with them,” said Magnotta.

Over the spring and summer, Mia has continued to work on every aspect of her game, but now as the full-time starter, using her voice to direct her teammates in front of her becomes her most important job.

“Definitely just working on my voice on the field. Trying to be loud, trying to direct my teammates to help make their jobs easier,” said Magnotta. “I think just trying to put yourself in their shoes. What do they need to hear to help them execute their role? Lisa has been super helpful with that.”

As a former All-American goalkeeper for the Hawkeyes herself, Lisa Cellucci knows the ins and outs of the job. If anyone can speak about Mia’s growth over the offseason, it is her.

“She’s really grown in her communication and organization, which is the biggest area we’ve been working on for the last year because from a technical standpoint, she’s fantastic,” said Cellucci. “She’s a super quick goalkeeper, has great save ability, so her organization and communication is probably the biggest area of growth.”

The backup behind Mia Magnotta is true freshman Allie Curry out of Antioch, IL. She was a four-year starter for Antioch Community High School and was a two-time all-state selection.

Defensive Midfielders

Projected Starters: Jr Lieve Schalk, tFr Gia Whalen

Bench: Jr Jacey Wittel, Jr Celine De Witte

The article previewing the attacking half of the lineup mentioned the 153 combined starts between Sofie Stribos and Esme Gibson, but the Hawkeyes also return Lieve Schalk at defensive midfielder. With Schalk returning as a two-year starter, Iowa returns 193 total starts among the midfielders. Not only is Lieve a key piece in the midfield, she plays a big role on the attack penalty corner and is a penalty shot taker if a game goes into a shootout.

The other defensive midfield position will be filled by true freshman Gia Whalen. She arrived earlier this summer with some of the other incoming freshman and was able to get some early training in with the group of returners. Out of Paoli, PA, Gia is a top ten rated recruit in the country by MAX Field Hockey and was named an NFHCA First Team High School All-American as a senior. She rounds out a group of freshman that will have a large impact on the Hawkeyes success this season.

“We’ve got really great freshman and one transfer coming in, so I think we have a lot more depth than we did last year…learning has been a big process, but we’re at a much higher level than we were a couple years ago with incoming freshman,” said Esme Gibson. “Just gives us a new look for teams. For the past couple of years we’ve shown the same structures and the same people to teams, so just bringing in something new that people aren’t expecting.”

Rounding out the defensive midfielders, Jacey Wittel appeared in all 20 games last season with 16 starts and recorded two assists. Also with the group is University of Mount Olive transfer Celine De Witte. She was a Second Team All-South Atlantic selection last season for the Trojans.

Defensive Penalty Corner

The defensive penalty corner team is an overshadowed part of the game. Everyone focuses on how successful a team is at earning attack penalty corners and converting them into goals. Last season, the Hawkeyes gave up 73 penalty corners, but the defensive penalty corner team stood tall and killed off 66/73 (90.4%) chances. The DPC team will be run by Harper Dunne, Sofie Stribos, Esme Gibson and a couple of true freshman.

“We feel great about (our group),” said Lisa Cellucci. “We return most of it, so I think we’re really solid in that area and then adding some key freshman to that with Gia Whalen and Dionne van Aalsum, they have been great additions to that.”