PREVIEW: #8 Iowa Field Hockey vs #3 Rutgers

The Iowa Field Hockey team enters the final week of the regular season with a 12-4 record, but they are coming off an 0-2 roadtrip. The Hawkeyes lost 4-1 at Maryland on Friday and bounced back with a solid performance at Penn State, but fell 2-1. Lisa Cellucci’s squad sits at #8 in the country, with a Senior Day matchup against #3 Rutgers as the only game left to play.

“Our practice (after Maryland) was fantastic. We felt really good about the performance on Sunday, despite the loss, but yesterday’s practice was really good,” said Cellucci. “The team has been dialed for most of the season, we just had a really poor performance Friday. They’re really focused on what we need to do for Rutgers.”

As for the senior day festivities, starting midfielders Esme Gibson and Sofie Stribos, as well as Sammy Freeman, Kelly Rose and MJ McNary will be playing their final game at Grant Field.

“Hopefully we can use it as a super power. Those women have been playing for us for four, five years and have been humongous components to our team. They have been great ambassadors and have been stalwarts. I really hope that we can put it all together and play for them, so they have a great last experience at Grant Field.”

As for the opponent, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights come into the game ranked as the #3 team in the country and own a 15-1 record. They have ranked wins over #7 Maryland, #11 Ohio State, #15 Penn State, #16 Michigan and #20 UMass. Their lone loss came last Sunday in a shootout against #1 Northwestern.

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

Rutgers Scarlet Knights Projected Starting Lineup

Forwards: Guillermina Causarano, Bridy Molyneaux, Marique Dieudonne

Midfielders: Paulina Niklaus, Ava Cickavage, Lucy Bannatyne, Carly Snarski

Defenders: Oliva Beattie, Puck Winter, Iris Langejans

Goalkeeper: Sophia Howard

THE BREAKDOWN

Before we take a deep dive into breaking down the Scarlet Knights lineup, let’s take a look at this matchup on paper. FieldHockeyCorner.com has the Hawkeyes ranked at #9 in their computer rankings, while Rutgers is at #7. The RPI has Iowa ranked 11th, with Rutgers up in 5th.

Offensively, Iowa is averaging 3.19 goals, 14.6 shots and 5.8 penalty corners per game. For Rutgers, they are averaging 2.38 goals, 14.6 shots and 5.8 penalty corners per game. The Scarlet Knights have put 56.8% of their 234 shots on goal, while the Hawkeyes have put 62.8% of their 234 shots on goal. Defensively, Iowa is allowing just 0.94 goals, 8.4 shots and 4.8 penalty corners per game. For Rutgers, they are allowing 1.00 goals, 10.6 shots and 5.3 penalty corners per game.

“This is one of their best years they’ve had in their program’s history,” said Cellucci. “They play really stretched, so they stretch from sideline to sideline and north to south as well and they are all very good distributors. They really handle the ball well and their penalty corners are extremely dangerous, so we’re going to have to defend really well as a team.”

“Penalty corner execution similar to Northwestern. A little bit like how North Carolina stretched us really far. Rutgers will do the same, but really different personnel. We’re going to take bits and pieces from all different things.”

Forwards Guillermina Causarano (12 gls), Bridy Molyneaux (6 gls) and Marique Dieudonne (5 gls) have combined for 23 of the 38 goals scored this season. Last season, Rutgers averaged 1.67 goals and 11.4 shots per game. Those numbers have improved, most in part due to that trio of forwards.

“They’re fast, they’re strong, they’re really skilled with the ball and they get lots of upgrades in the attacking circle,” said Cellucci. “We have to be ready in transition, but also just in settled offensive opportunities. We’re going to have to be on our toes and we’re going to have to be very organized.”

Here's the game-winning OT goal from Guillermina Causarano as RU wins 2-1 in overtime over Michigan pic.twitter.com/pv3kK38hFK

— Rutgers Field Hockey (@RUFieldHockey) October 6, 2023

Defensively, Rutgers is ranked fourth in the country in goals allowed (16) and are allowing opponents to get off just 10.6 shots per game. They are led by 2022 Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Year Puck Winter. She is second on the team with eight goals and is tied for first in the country in defensive saves with nine.

“She was a huge piece for them last year and she’s a huge piece this year and she’s even better. Those defensive saves, she’s a post player (on the defensive corner) and she’s come up with some clutch saves behind their goalkeeper. We’ll keep our eye on her and they look to her in a lot of situations.”

Alongside Winter on the back line is Third Team All-American Iris Langejans and true freshman Oliva Beattie. They have helped run a defensive group that is second in the Big Ten in goals allowed (7) in conference play.

“They’re a bigger, stronger, really disciplined defensive team,” said Cellucci. “They hold their structure really well and then they just don’t give you much. We have to be able to expect the ball and be really strong on the ball.”

In goal, the Scarlet Knights have redshirt junior Sophia Howard and she has put together the best season of her career to this point. She is ranked 6th in the country with an 81.0% save percentage, while her 84.1% save percentage in conference play ranks second behind Maryland’s Alyssa Klebasko.

“Sophia is really good. She’s quick on her feet. She’s a little bit bigger, so she takes up a lot of the cage and she organizes (the defense) well,” said Cellucci. “If we can be pinpoint in our accuracy, we can beat her laterally and low.”

I like to go through the statistics and point out things that look important. When looking at Rutgers, one thing specifically stands out is that the third quarter seems to be an opening for the opponent. Despite outscoring opponents 38-16 this season, the Scarlet Knights are being outscored 9-7, outshot 47-44 and out penalty cornered 19-16 in third quarter. In every other quarter, Rutgers is outshooting opponents by at least 13 shots and have allowed just seven goals combined in the other three quarters.

“In the film we’ve seen, we’ve noticed that about their third quarter. I don’t know if they just come out a little slow from halftime or they have a little fatigue setting in and then they get re-engaged, but we’re going to try to take advantage from moment one and not wait until the third quarter.”

“We’re going to look at trying to change our structure as we go from the first half to the second half and we’ve been doing that in different games to show a different look. Definitely somthing that we’ll consider.”

Finally, the biggest storyline that has been following Rutgers all season is their ability to find ways to win games. They are 15-1 overall, but an incredible seven wins have come by one goal, including three overtime wins and three shootout wins. Even in their last win over Indiana, the game was tied 2-2 with 11 minutes to play, before they scored a pair of goals to grab the victory.

“It’s been impressive, what they’ve been able to do. I think, first of all, in overtime, they have seven very good players and that really helps them. More space, more time and they’re very poised over the ball,” said Cellucci. “I think they really shine in overtime and then even more so, just because of how defensively solid they are, they can force a shootout. Then they just go to their individual skills.”

Keys to Victory from Lisa Cellucci

1. Don’t over press defensively, cover the field together

2. Limit Rutgers penalty corner chances

3. Put the Rutgers defense under pressure with corners

Final Thought

You never want to lose on Senior Day and a win for the Hawkeyes over #3 Rutgers would be a huge confidence boost going into postseason play. While there aren’t any massive implications win or lose, there are still some things to keep in mind going into the final week of the season.

The Hawkeyes do not have any control over their Big Ten Tournament seed. If Penn State defeats Indiana on Friday, Iowa will be the 6 seed, win or lose. If Penn State loses, the Hawkeyes would be the 5 seed with an win and would face 4 seed Ohio State in the first round.

As for the NCAA Tournament, Iowa is going to be in, barring losing their next two games and conference tournament chaos, where Liberty doesn’t win the Big East, Harvard doesn’t win the Ivy League and Penn State or Michigan wins the Big Ten. I can’t stress enough how unlikely a scenario like that is, but a win over Rutgers would make it a zero percent chance.