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All the news for Tuesday 20 April 2021

Malaysia brace for hard time from Britain

By Jugjet Singh


Coach Arul Selvaraj

UNFIT Malaysia are expected to face another torrid time in the international triangular against Great Britain at National Hockey Stadium tonight.

Malaysia lost 3-0 to Japan last Saturday while Japan and Great Britain drew 2-2 a day later. This indicates Malaysia will end up as punching bag for the Olympic-bound teams.

"Fitness was a big problem when we played Japan as we were not able to push our players while training online before they came out to play in the Malaysia Hockey League.

"I expect another difficult match against Great Britain. We expected this when we planned for the friendlies (the triangular)," said national coach Arul Selvaraj.

"We knew it is going to be a difficult tournament but we had to come out and play to re-start the international hockey circle which was brought to a stop by Covid-19,"

And the Malaysians are even ready to play during the fasting month, because opportunities like this (against top teams) are hard to come by.

National skipper Marhan Jalil said: "Against Japan, all the players gave their best to get back their rhythm of playing as a team.

"There was good effort overall, even though the end result indicated otherwise.

"During the fasting month, we need to change our eating habits during match days. The players have only some dates, cakes and bananas to get 'instant' energy and keep it light (before the 9pm matches)," said Marhan.

Malaysia can take a leaf from the Great Britain-Japan match to plot their next friendly.

A late goal from Hirotaka Zendana gave Japan a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Great Britian. Shota Yamada was their other goal-getter. Britain got their goals through James Gall and Rupert Shipperley.

New Straits Times

Malaysia fall to Great Britain

By Jugjet Singh


Razie Rahim scores Malaysia’s only goal against Great Britain in the 3-1 loss.

KUALA LUMPUR: Coach Arul Selvaraj added fresh legs into Malaysia's international friendly triangular against Great Britain today but it was still not enough.

The British visitors easily beat Malaysia 3-1 at the National Hockey Stadium.

After seeing his men lose 3-0 to Japan on Saturday, Arul added national in juniors Akhimullah Anuar Esook, Pavandip Singh and Shello Silverius against Great Britain.

Until halftime, Malaysia and Great Britain were on level terms, 0-0.

But in the third quarter, the Brits scored two quick goals in just one minute through Rupert Shipperley (35th) and Phil Roper (36th).

The national team lost their shape and tenacity after that, leaving Adam Dixon to make it 3-0 in the 44th before Razie Rahim pulled one back with a penalty corner effort in the 55th minute.

Malaysia will play Japan again tomorrow.

Before the match started, Arul had said: "The focus point for my players in this match against Britain is the 'speed of thought' as Britain players are fast with the ball as well as footwork.

"My players need to have a 'fast mindset' to make an impact."

New Straits Times

Recent performances show we are in good shape ahead of Games, says Indian hockey forward Shilanand Lakra

India won both their FIH Pro League fixtures in Argentina and two of the four practice matches, with Shilanand finishing the tour with a goal in the final practice game.


File image of Indian team. Image courtesy: Hockey India

Bengaluru: The recent performance against reigning Olympic champions Argentina shows that the Indian team is in good shape going into the Tokyo Games, feels young forward Shilanand Lakra.

India won both their FIH Pro League fixtures in Argentina and two of the four practice matches, with Shilanand finishing the tour with a goal in the final practice game.

"I think we played very good hockey against Olympic Champions Argentina. Our recent performances shows that we are in good shape going into a big event like the Olympics," he said in a release issued by Hockey India on Monday.

"Right now, though, our focus is only on the FIH Pro League games against Great Britain next month."

Despite being one of the younger players in the Indian men's hockey team, Shilanand held his own in Argentina, and is happy to have contributed whenever opportunities came his way.

"Having made my debut for the senior team three years ago, I'd have expected myself to play more but that is how competitive it is; there are so many amazing players in the core probables group," he said.

"My aim has always been to earn a place in the team through consistent performances in domestic tournaments, national camps and whenever I play for India as a starter or a substitute."

The 21-year-old said the long break due to COVID-19 pandemic helped him and credited chief coach Graham Reid for improving his game.

"To be out of competitive action for so long...it gave me the time to re-think and analyse my performances, and also prepare for the highs and lows in the months ahead," he said.

"I am also constantly in touch with the coaching staff, especially chief coach Graham Reid, who has helped me improve on my game immensely."

Shilanand also hailed the contribution of Amit Rohidas and senior pro Birendra Lakra —  the two other players from Odisha — who are also his teammates in the senior team.

"I think both of them have been exceptional and I get so much inspiration when I speak to them. They have always been given me sound advice," he said.

"I turned to them whenever my morale was low over the past two years and it helps a young player like me to see two other players from Odisha make it big in Indian hockey."

India will play Great Britain in the FIH Pro League on 8 and 9 May.

Firstpost

After high in Argentina, India focus on consistency

K. ARUMUGAM



Playing the first match of the FIH Pro League double headers in Argentina, India burst a few stereotypes. For a change, they scored mere seconds from the final hooter to avoid defeat instead of conceding and losing. They also scored while a player sat out a yellow card on both occasions instead of conceding. The end result: India salvaged a point with a 2-2 draw and added a bonus point from the shootout.

They carried their grit and gumption to the second match the next day. Braving early Argentine assaults, India grabbed the match by the scruff to win 3-0 and aggregate five points from a possible six from the double header.

Captain Manpreet Singh, however, tempered euphoria arising from a tour on which, besides the spoils of the FIH Pro League double headers, his team won two, drew one and lost only one practice game.

He spoke of sustaining momentum, reviewing performance and putting grey areas under the microscope.

India won the first practice match 4-3, drew the second 4-4. They then played the FIH Pro League double headers. Argentina won the third practice game 1-0 but India ended the tour in style, winning the fourth and final game 4-2.

The brownie points and bragging rights from beating the Olympic champions are immense. More so India and Argentina find themselves in Pool A at the Tokyo Olympics. The Argentines, however, are not likely to loosen their grip on the gold medal too easily and Tokyo may be a totally different proposition. Here in Buenos Aires, Argentina spent a year without playing an international match, were rusty and then apparently fatigued by playing six in 10 days.

This, however, is not to detract from a bright Indian performance. The team have shown the propensity to score. Drag flicker Harmanpreet has been in fine fettle, scoring a brace in the first FIH Pro League encounter and adding another in the second match.

His prowess at the set piece got the better of the Argentine double-block runners and the strudy defender’s expertise at the drag-flick, one wagers, will be the key at the Tokyo Olympics in July-August.


Sreejesh and goalie Krishan Pathak: The duo has every reason to smile as they outperformed their rivals

But another aspect of the Buenos Aires success has been goalkeeping by the veteran Sreejesh and his able deputy Krishan Pathak. Sreejesh’s heroics in the shootout is something we’ve grown to expect while the youngster Pathak’s plucky show in the second match duly brought him the player of the match award. Comprehensive may have been victory in the second match but it could have been different had Pathak not shown courage and enterprise in denying Martin Ferreiro twice in the first quarter.

Head coach Graham Reid’s methods, one discerns, are fetching results. The team has galvanized itself on several occasions when the tide has been unfavourable. Possession has been impressive on tour. The second goal in the second match went the length and breadth of the pitch, involved more than a dozen passes, and ended with Lalit Upadhyay slotting home after goalkeeper Juan Vivaldi saved.

It displayed the team’s ability to control play with crisp, short passes. But like Reid pointed out, such confidence and control should be presented in all four quarters. In other words, consistency ought to be the watchword and Manpreet echoed the Australian’s prescription in post-match comments.

Sterner tests lie ahead. Great Britain and Spain lie in wait as India play their FIH Pro League matches there in May. Slipping from fourth to fifth position in both the FIH Pro League table as well as world rankings despite creditable performances, India will well know it’s tough in the higher echelons of world hockey.

Stick2Hockey.com

Boon rescues Léopold’s place in Belgian men’s playoff semi-finals



Tom Boon struck with just 40 seconds to go to earn Royal Léopold a Belgian semi-final spot as they got the win they needed over Royal Racing Club de Bruxelles in dramatic fashion.

It meant they advanced at the expense of La Gantoise on the final day of the playoff stages after the long-time leaders lost out to KHC Dragons 3-1.

Against Racing, Léo went in front within two minutes of the start via Dylan Englebert via a penalty corner reboud. And they stayed just in front until the 56th minute when Louis Hottlet deflected in Diego Lucaccioni’s long pass to tie things up.

That goal looked set to eliminate the EHL third place finishers but they found one last surge with Boon – back after injury – netted from the penalty spot for his 29th goal of the season.

“It was a very difficult match and even more so against a team that had nothing to lose,” admitted the prolific Red Lions striker.

“They played well until the end of the game and we had to rely on a little bit of luck to emerge. It was more complicated than expected but it is a season when nothing has really gone in our favour with so many injuries. I hope that this will serve as a trigger for the final sprint and that we can be ready at the right time.”

Dragons went through as group winners with their 3-1 win with Florent van Aubel scoring twice. They will face Orée in their semi-final while Léopold go up against Waterloo Ducks who topped their group with a 7-4 success against Orée in their final group game.

Euro Hockey League media release

Amsterdam back on top in women’s Hoofdklasse while Bloemendaal confirm first in men’s league



The women’s Hoofdklasse regular season top spot will go down to the wire after EHL champions Den Bosch fell to a home defeat at the hands of hdm.

Erica Sanders profited from a successful high press to pop in the first goal and Pien van Nes’s hight drag-flick into the top right corner had hdm 2-0 up.

Den Bosch got one back via Frédérique Matla’s powerful corner shot, her 18th goal of the season, before half-time to get right back into the game.

But the Brabant club was unable to break through again and they were unable to back up Thursday night’s 1-0 win over AH&BC Amsterdam.

Amsterdam, as a result, were able to bounce back in style with a 4-1 win at Oranje-Rood with Michelle Fillet scoring twice, adding to an early goal from Ilse Kappelle and Joy Haarman’s second half tip-in.

They now have a three-point lead over Den Bosch who have a game in hand which will be played next Saturday against third placed SCHC. SCHC and hdm are mathematically assured of a place in the top four.

In the men’s Tulp Hoofdklasse, HC Bloemendaal confirmed they will win the regular season following a 6-3 win over AH&BC Amsterdam on Sunday.

Thursday saw Bloemendaal crucially beat SV Kampong 2-1 with Tom Hiebendaal’s last minute goal which built an eight-point lead with three games to go.

And they maintained that with the win over Amsterdam with goals from Yannick van der Drift, Sam Figge and Thierry Brinkman making it 3-0 at half-time. Brinkman and van der Drift both got their second goals to make it 5-0 before Amsterdam rallied with three late goals.

Kampong won 3-1 at Oranje-Rood to pretty much confirm they will finish in second place while Rotterdam got an important point against Pinoké to stay in third place.

Niklas Wellen and Alex Hendrickx combined to put Pinoké 2-1 up but Rotterdam replied via Tristan Algera for 2-2 from a corner. It gives them Rotterdam a five-point buffer over fifth placed Pinoké with an extra game still to play.

Den Bosch moved into four place with a 2-0 win over bottom side Almere.

Euro Hockey League media release

Düsseldorf fight back to head up to take top German women’s seed for playoffs



Düsseldorf produced a stunning comeback to beat Uhlenhorst Mülheim 3-2 to finish the regular women’s season in Germany with the best record.

They trailed 2-0 after the opening quarter but two goals from Emma Sophie Hessler either side of a Lilly Stoffelsma strike earned them the result.

It lifted them to 64 points, four more than group rivals UHC Hamburg and three better than Pool A’s Der Club an der Alster and Mannheimer HC who were on 61.

It gives Nico Sussenburger’s side the number one seeding for the quarter-final playoffs and he is looking forward to meeting Harvestehuder THC in the knock-out stages.

“We defended very carelessly, but we were able to dig out the win today. If we want to win games in the next three weeks, we have to get better defensively. In the quarter-finals we have an opponent with the HTHC with a very unique, often very successful, style of play. But I think we have a lot to offer and have a good chance of winning this duel.”

Club an der Alster’s brilliant run in the German league continued as they ran up two more wins, crucially beating pool rivals Mannheim 3-0 with goals from Benedetta Wenzel, Kira Horn and Anne Schröder.

A day earlier, they were too strong for Munich SC with a 5-0 scoreline. It means they have gone six games without conceding and have recorded seven wins in succession in the local league in 2021.

They will take on Berliner HC in their quarter-final with Uhlenhorst Mülheim meeting Mannheimer HC and Rot-Weiss Köln up against UHC Hamburg.

These quarter-finals will be played on a best of three basis with the first legs next weekend with the second and possible third legs on the weekend of May 1 and 2.

Euro Hockey League media release

Campo secure Spanish women’s top spot as men’s competition goes to final day



Club de Campo stormed over the line to win the Spanish women’s Iberdrola League with two big wins, seeing off CH Sardinero 10-0 on Friday before running up a 3-0 success against RC Jolaseta on Saturday.

Against Sardinero, Lucia Abajo de Saenz scored of two of their first three goals en route to a hat trick with Laura Barrios weighing in with two more goals to her tally.

Begoña Garcia and Sara Barrios both got two, too, with Candela Meijas adding the other goal in a comprehensive 19th win of the campaign.

A day later, Garcia was on the mark two more times after Meijas had opened the scoring at Jolaseta.

Before Friday, Junior FC still had a mathematical chance of closing the gap but those results

Second placed Junior FC, meanwhile, drew their game against Atlètic Terrassa 0-0 on Sunday with the combination of results leaving Campo 11 points clear.

The men’s regular season competition will go to the final day of the campaign after Atlètic Terrassa edged out FC Barcelona 3-2 while Campo beat Jolaseta 6-0.

That leaves Atlètic one point clear of Campo at the head of the table with one game left each. The former will make the short trip to face CD Terrassa while the Madrid club will hope to keep up their side of the bargain when they face bottom of the table Linia 22.

Euro Hockey League media release

Guidelines are moveable feast in Covid times



The FIH Playbook, which is the guidance document for FIH tournament protocols during the Covid Pandemic has been a moveable feast since its launch back in May 2020. As the pandemic raged across the globe, effectively putting society, and of course sport, on hold, so hockey had to get used to a new normal.

Except there was no ‘normal’. The situation was unprecedented and therefore called for dynamic responses. During the creation of the Playbook, FIH Director of Sport and Development, Jon Wyatt, called on the expertise and advice of people from a wide range of backgrounds.

The document aims to provide a guideline for all those involved in the delivery of FIH events. This includes hosts, teams, officials, media and broadcasters and it focuses on providing a safe playing environment for everyone involved.

Some of the guidelines will have become second nature now. Wearing of face masks, washing hands, socially distancing – these have all become part and parcel of everyday life. The concept of a team bubble, where everyone involved in a team, including support staff and officials, is something that has grown out of the knowledge gained in the past year.

Vaccinations are also a later addition to the original guidelines. In May 2020, vaccinations were way in the future. Now they are very much a reality and the FIH is working closely with the national associations to encourage athletes, officials and stakeholders to be vaccinated before travelling to an event.

It is a similar situation when it comes to medical facilities at events. The provision of Covid officers for teams, Covid isolation rooms at hotels and Covid referral hospitals are all developments that could not have been foreseen back in early 2020.

As international matches come back onto the calendar, so the Playbook outlines travel guidelines. This includes detailed advice on how to keep everyone as safe as possible on flights, transits from the airport and travel to and from the ground.

By complying with all the protocols, including regular testing and maintenance of team bubbles, outlined in the Playbook, by the time the teams and officials arrive at a stadium, it is reasonable to assume that the matches can be played under as normal conditions as possible.

It is also important that the sport is seen to be observing all Covid restrictions so on-field behaviour such as spitting is punishable with a card and huddles or goal celebrations are heavily discouraged.

Jon Wyatt has been at the heart of developing the FIH Playbook and he explained how it was important that the guidelines remained quite generic, so they could be adapted to meet local rules and government protocols.

“Whilst the COVID circumstances around the world are continually changing, hopefully for the better as the vaccine programmes are rolled out, we felt it was important to provide some principles which can be followed for all hockey events, and obviously then adapted in line with local rules and Government protocols,” said Wyatt.

“As such, the document has been kept quite generic. It has been challenging, and will be updated regularly, but it is an important document and part of our duty to help all involved in hockey events around the world to get back up and running and onto hockey pitches everywhere.”

Of course hockey is far from alone in this regard and there has been plenty of collusion with other sports to adopt best practices. However, as Wyatt points out, there are some situations that are specific to hockey and these can be both helpful – hockey is an outdoor sport and there is no need to touch the ball with their hands – or a hindrance – indoor hockey is played indoor and defenders at penalty corners (pre-Covid) used to share protective equipment.

Aside from learning from within hockey and from other experiences of other sports, there has been many other inputs. These include the FIH document Return to Hockey and Pro League guides, the IOC/Tokyo2020 Playbooks, World Health Organization guides and COVID guidelines from other sporting events that have taken place.

As Wyatt says: “We hope the Playbook is a helpful resource for our national associations and continental federations who are planning upcoming hockey events and that it contributes towards providing safe environments for players, coaches, officials, the hockey media and spectators to get back to hockey events in the coming weeks and months.”

#FIHCovidPlaybook

FIH site

Maryland, Northwestern and Penn State Earn Weekly Field Hockey Honors


Maryland's Noelle Frost is Defensive Player of the Week

Terrapins’ Frost, Wildcats’ Baekers, Nittany Lions’ Gladieux claim weekly awards

Offensive Player of the Week
Bente Baekers, Northwestern
F – So. – Rijswijk, Netherlands – Wateringse Veld College
• Scored all three of Northwestern’s goals last weekend as the Wildcats swept No. 2 Iowa
• Scored two goals on April 15 for a 2-1 comeback victory to help Northwestern secure the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament
• Scored the lone goal in the 1-0 win on April 17 to complete the sweep of Iowa
• Earns her second career Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honor and first of the season
• Last Northwestern Offensive Player of the Week: Peyton Halsey (March 1, 2021)
 
Defensive Player of the Week
Noelle Frost, Maryland
GK – Sr. – Glenwood, Md. – Glenelg
• Helped Maryland sweep No. 6 Rutgers in the final games of the regular season with a strong presence in net
• Finished the game with seven saves and preserved Maryland’s 4-2 lead on April 15 as Rutgers got off seven shots in the fourth quarter
• Tallied six saves and a 2-1 Terrapin victory on April 17 as the Scarlet Knights had four penalty corners in the first seven minutes of the fourth quarter
• Claims her fourth career Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week award and first of the season
• Last Maryland Defensive Player of the Week: Riley Donnelly (March 22, 2021)
 
Freshman of the Week
Sophia Gladieux, Penn State
F – Boyertown, Pa.– Oley Valley
• Tallied five points on the weekend to help Penn State secure the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament
• Notched a goal in Penn State's 2-1 victory over visiting Ohio State on April 16 to capture the No. 2 seed for next week’s league tournament
• The following day, scored an unassisted goal and had an assist in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Buckeyes
• Garners her second career Big Ten Freshman of the Week award
• Last Penn State Freshman of the Week: Sophia Gladieux (March 22, 2021)

2020-21 Big Ten Field Hockey Players of the Week
March 1
O: Peyton Halsey, So., NU
D: Gianna Glatz, Sr., RU
F: Maddie Zimmer, NU         

March 8
O: Riley Donnelly, Jr., MD
D: Anthe Nijziel, Jr., IOWA
F: Bridy Molyneaux, RU
 
March 16
O: Bree Bednarski, Sr., PSU
D: Kayla Blas, Jr., NU
F: Liz-Elaine Stange, RU
 
March 22
O/F: Sophia Gladieux, PSU
D: Riley Donnelly, Jr., MD
 
March 29
O: Kathryn Peterson, Jr., MICH
D: Anna Spieker, D, MICH
F: Lauren Wadas, NU
 
April 5
O: Mackenzie Allessie, So., OSU
D: Gianna Glatz, Sr., RU
F: Rayne Wright, MD
 
April 12
O: Mackenzie Allessie, So., OSU
D: Liz Romano, Jr., RU
F: Lora Clarke, MICH
 
April 19
O: Bente Baekers, So., NU
D: Noelle Frost, Sr., MD
F: Sophia Gladieux, PSU

B1G Ten media release

Big Ten Announces 2020-21 Field Hockey Postseason Honors


Iowa’s Anthe Nijziel named Big Ten Player and Defensive Player of the Year

 ROSEMONT, Ill. – The Big Ten Conference announced its 2020-21 field hockey All-Big Ten teams and individual award winners on Monday, with Iowa, Northwestern, Ohio State and Rutgers collecting individual honors. The Hawkeye’s Anthe Nijziel was tabbed Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, while Northwestern’s Maddie Zimmer collected Freshman of the Year accolades and Ohio State’s Mackenzie Allessie claimed Offensive Player of the Year honors. Iowa’s Lisa Cellucci and Rutgers’ Meredith Civico shared Coach of the Year recognition.
 
Nijziel earned Big Ten Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year honors after leading Iowa to a top-three ranking in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) poll every week this season. With Nijziel on the back line, the Hawkeyes are sixth in goals-against average (0.60) and seventh in shutouts per game (0.46) in the nation. Nijziel also helped Iowa offensively by adding seven points this season (2G, 3A).  Nijziel’s honor marks the eighth time a Hawkeye has been named Big Ten Player of the Year and the first since Melisa Miller in 1997. She is the sixth Iowa player to claim Defensive Player of the Year and the first since Meghan Beamesderfer in 2009. Nijziel is the first Big Ten player to earn both awards in the same year since Traci Anselmo of Penn State did so in 2001 and the first Hawkeye to ever claim both honors in the same season.
 
Allessie secured Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year after leading the Big Ten in goals (14), points (32), shots (76), shots on goal (49) and points per game (2.70) The sophomore sits fifth nationally with her points per game average. Allessie is the fourth Buckeye to earn Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year honors and the first since Linda Haussener in 2008.
 
Zimmer earned Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors after starting all 13 games. The newcomer scored three goals on the season and added one assist as Northwestern earned the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament. Zimmer is the third Wildcat to earn the Big Ten’s top freshman honor and follows teammate Bente Baekers, who claimed the award in 2019.
 
Cellucci received her second career Big Ten Coach of the Year honor after Iowa was ranked in the top-3 in the NFHCA poll for five weeks straight. The Hawkeyes amassed a 10-4 record and a 5-3 mark in conference play. Iowa sits second in goals allowed (0.60) and shutouts per game (.46) per conference rankings. This award mark’s Cellucci’s second Big Ten Coach of the Year in as many years.

Civico earned Rutgers’ first ever Coach of the Year award as the Scarlet Knights finished 9-4 overall and 5-3 in league play. Civico claimed the honor after the Scarlet Knight went back-to-back weekends of upsetting and sweeping ranked opponents. Rutgers topped No. 12 Penn State April 2 and 4, followed by wins against No. 3 Northwestern April 9 and 11.
 
The Big Ten also recognized nine Sportsmanship Award honorees. The students chosen are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. These students also must be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
 
The complete list of All-Big Ten honorees and Sportsmanship Award recipients can be found below.
 
2020-21 FIELD HOCKEY ALL-CONFERENCE AND INDIVIDUAL AWARD WINNERS
 
Individual Awards
Player of the Year: Anthe Nijziel, Jr., D, IOWA
Offensive Player of the Year: Mackenzie Allessie, So., M, OSU
Defensive Player of the Year: Anthe Nijziel, Jr., D, IOWA
Freshman of the Year: Maddie Zimmer, M, NU
Co-Coach of the Year: Lisa Cellucci, IOWA and Meredith Civico, RU
 
First Team All-Big Ten
Ellie Holley, Sr., M, IOWA
Anthe Nijziel, Jr., D, IOWA
Brooke DeBerdine, Sr., M, MD
Riley Donnelly, Jr., D, MD
Halle O'Neill, Sr., B, MICH
Kayla Blas, Jr., M, NU
Maddie Zimmer, Fr., M, NU
Mackenzie Allessie, So.,M, OSU
Sophia Gladieux, Fr., F, PSU
Gianna Glatz, Sr., GK, RU
Katie Larmour, Sr., M, RU
 
Second Team All-Big Ten*
Maddy Murphy, Sr., F, IOWA
Bibi Donraadt, Jr., F, MD
Kathryn Peterson, Jr., M, MICH
Sarah Pyrtek, So., F/M, MICH
Anna Spieker, Jr., GK, MICH
Cara Bonshak, Sr., M, MSU
Bente Baekers, So., F, NU
Leanne Bough, So., M, OSU
Abby Myers, Sr., M, PSU
Elena Vos, So., B, PSU
Kerrie Burns, Sr., M/D, RU
Milena Redlingshoefer, Jr., M, RU
 
Sportsmanship Honorees
Sachi Ananias, Sr., IND
Nikki Freeman, Sr., IOWA
Kyler Greenwalt, Sr., MD
Clare Brush, Sr., MICH
Cara Bonshak, Sr., MSU
Abby Renaud, So., NU
Nikki Trzaska, Sr., OSU
Emma Spisak, Sr., PSU
Liz Romano, Jr., RU
 
*Additional players due to ties in voting

B1G Ten Media release

Northwestern sweeps No. 2 Iowa in final weekend of regular season play

Bente Baekers and the NU defense dominated against the Hawkeyes

By Meredith Revsine



After getting swept by Rutgers last weekend, the Northwestern field hockey team capitalized on the chance to close out the regular season with a statement against the highly touted Iowa Hawkeyes.

Both teams were dominant on the defensive end this past Thursday, leading to a scoreless first quarter. However, Iowa got on the board first with a fast break into the circle in the first minutes of the second quarter. Northwestern’s Bente Baekers evened the score later in the quarter after receiving a long pass up the field from Lauren Wadas, and the teams headed into the second half tied at one goal apiece. Baekers quickly netted her second goal of the contest with a reverse shot through the Iowa goalkeeper's legs to put the ‘Cats on top. Early in the fourth quarter, Iowa appeared to have evened the score, but the point was ultimately overturned, as the officials declared a foot foul had occurred prior to the goal. With just 12 seconds left to play, Iowa challenged a call off of a corner, which led to five additional seconds being added to the game clock. Northwestern’s defensive unit held strong and was able to fend off the Hawkeyes, earning the team’s highest-ranked win since defeating No. 2 Maryland in 2014.

With the help of stellar defense from goalkeepers Florien Marcussen and Annabel Skubisz, Northwestern was able to shut out the Hawkeyes in its final regular-season matchup on Saturday. The fast paced, back-and-forth game saw both teams firing off multiple shots early in the first quarter. The battle continued throughout the first half, but neither squad was able to capitalize on the multitude of shots they unleashed on the goal. The teams remained scoreless until late in the third quarter, when Baekers tallied her tenth goal of the season and second game-winner of the weekend with a reverse shot to the far post. Anchored by Christen Conley and Skubisz, Northwestern hunkered down on defense in the final quarter of the contest. Skubisz recorded two blocks and a save to solidify the ‘Cats’ victory.

Northwestern will travel to Iowa City this week to play in the Big Ten Tournament, beginning with a rematch against No. 6 Rutgers on April 21.

Inside NU