NCAAT Preview: #8 Iowa Field Hockey vs #10 Louisville

For the 28th time in program history, the Iowa Field Hockey team will play in the NCAA Tournament. The Hawkeyes enter the tournament with a 13-5 record and are set for a rematch of a regular season matchup against the tenth-ranked Louisville Cardinals in the Evanston Regional on Friday.

“We get the opportunity to have a clean slate, new season and we have two games in front of us to try to thrive and advance and play ourselves into the Final Four,” said head coach Lisa Cellucci. “We just told them how proud of them that we are able to be in this position, to be in our 28th Sweet 16 and our sixth straight.”

The Cards enter the the tournament with a 14-6 record and are coming off a semifinal appearance in the ACC Tournament. They have wins over #1 Northwestern, #5 Virginia, #12 Ohio State, #14 Boston College, Miami OH and VCU. The Hawkeyes won their regular season matchup 2-1 in Louisville on October 15th.

“I think that was a good game for us, so I think we can take a lot of positives from that game, but also things that we know they have developed since that game, so really just taking some new things to them that they may not have seen yet and being able to adapt to what new things they show us,” said Esme Gibson.

Iowa Hawkeyes Projected Starting Lineup

Forwards: Alex Wesneski, Miranda Jackson, Dionne van Aalsum

Midfielders: Sofie Stribos, Esme Gibson, Annika Herbine, Gia Whalen

Defenders: Ella Wareham, Lieve Schalk, Milly Short

Goalkeeper: Mia Magnotta

Louisville Cardinals Projected Starting Lineup

Forwards: Aimee Plumb, Rylie Wollerton, Tyler Everslage

Midfielders: Emilia Kaczmarczyk, Mia Duchars, Lara Niebler

Defenders: Julie Kouijzer, Sofia Pendolino, India Reed

Goalkeeper: Merlijn van der Vegt

THE BREAKDOWN

Before we take a look at the regular season matchup and dive into breaking down Friday’s matchup, let’s take a look at this matchup on paper. FieldHockeyCorner.com has the Hawkeyes ranked at #6 in their computer rankings, while Louisville is at #10. The RPI has Iowa ranked 10th, with Louisville at 9th.

Offensively, Iowa is averaging 3.22 goals, 14.0 shots and 5.6 penalty corners per game. For Louisville, they are averaging 1.70 goals, 11.6 shots and 6.9 penalty corners per game. The Cardinals have put 57.3% of their 232 shots on goal, while the Hawkeyes have put 63.5% of their 252 shots on goal. Defensively, Iowa is allowing just 1.06 goals, 9.2 shots and 5.1 penalty corners per game. For Louisville, they are allowing 1.10 goals, 7.2 shots and 3.1 penalty corners per game.

It was just 25 days ago that these two teams met in Louisville for a non-conference matchup. The Hawkeyes came away with a 2-1 win and in the first half, they were able to control possession, which led to chances. They earned seven shots, four penalty corners and scored a goal in the first half.

“Our ability to move the ball up the field and build the ball instead of just pushing tempo really fast and losing it is definitely something that we took away from that game and can build on,” said Alex Wesneski. “I think it’s also important that we created a lot of opportunities for ourselves.”

“We felt like within our structure, the angles and how we chose to build the ball, we did a really good job and that’s going to be key going forward in this next game too,” said Lisa Cellucci.

In the first half of that game, the Hawkeye defense was solid. They held the Cards to just four shots, three penalty corners and no goals in the opening half. In the second half, Louisville was able to create some pressure, trailing by a goal, and held a 9-2 advantage in shots and a 6-1 advantage in penalty corners over the final 30 minutes. The contrast between both halves gives Iowa two different experiences to learn from going into Friday’s matchup.

“The first half we started well, the outlet really helped us. Intially our individual defending was very good, but as the game went on that slightly slipped, so we need to make sure that we play them, that it’s high throughout the whole game,” said Milly Short.

“I think we kept structure and we played really solid individual defense, especially through the first three quarters,” said Lisa Cellucci. “Fourth quarter, there was a lot of chaos, a lot of pressure and we could have relieved pressure a little bit better…it felt like a postseason game, so to be able to withstand that type of pressure was invaluable experience for us.”

Since then, Louisville has played five games, going 2-3 with a pair of wins over #14 Boston College, as well as losses against #3 Duke, #11 Syracuse and Appalachian State. Despite a couple of losses, the Cards still have dangerous players to keep an eye on starting at forward. Aimee Plumb, Rylie Wollerton and Tyler Everslage have combined for 14 goals and nine assists.

“They have some really quick attaacking forwards and their pressing can be really good at times. Defensively, our individual footwork and choosing the right time to channel versus tackle is definitely a factor for us,” said Esme Gibson.

“They’re quick and they’re very patient. They pick the right time to go, so we need to make sure that we’re patient with it and choose our correct time to extend and put pressure because they will keep coming, they will get circle entries and their corners are threatening,” said Milly Short. “We just need to be patient with our defense and not give up cheap fouls.”

Looking at the rest of the team, midfielder Emilia Kaczmarczyk and Julie Kouijzer have been key parts of the Louisville penalty corner unit, combining for eight goals and five assists this season. Defensively, over the last five games, the Cards have allowed 2.00 goals, 10 shots and 4.8 penalty corners per game.

“I think they’re pretty quick, so their ability to shift while we move the ball in the backfield is going to be a a challenge,” said Alex Wesneski. “As long as we’re in our spots and where we’re supposed to be, we should be able to play.”

In goal, Louisville has graduate senior Merlijn van der Vegt. She has made 57 saves this season, but ranks just 31st in the country with a .731 save percentage. For comparison, the Hawkeyes have gone up against three of the top five goalkeepers in the country this season.

Final Thought

“It was a lot easier to have the film at our disposal and be able to get to our prep a lot quicker. We would have been really diving through a lot more film if we were playing someone we hadn’t played,” said Cellucci. “The prep has stayed the same for us, as how the coaches prepare and how the team was prepared. We had an extra day to practice on Monday, which was fantastic, so we’re feeling really good.”

It’s a new season for the Hawkeyes, where only one game is guaranteed. Iowa is 18-9 all-time in opening round tournament games, including four straight wins. The Hawkeyes match up well with Louisville and won the first matchup, despite dealing with quite a bit of pressure on their defense in the second half. A consistent performance throughout and Iowa will be playing on Sunday for a spot in the Final Four. Looming there is a potential 12th all-time NCAA Tournament meeting with rival Northwestern.