The Iowa Field Hockey team was hoping to come out of today with a win to ensure their NCAA Tournament at-large chances. Instead, it will be a long wait till the selection show on Sunday night, as the Hawkeyes fell to #4 seed Michigan 3-0 in the First Round of the Big Ten Tournament.

The Wolverines outshot Iowa 16-3, including a 7-0 advantage in shots on goal and a 6-1 penalty corner advantage. Michigan had the Hawkeyes number this season, defeating them three times and outshooting them 56-10.

Iowa was down fifth year senior goalkeeper Grace McGuire due to injury and that thrust redshirt freshman Mia Magnotta into the starting role for the first time of her entire career. Credit to her, as she made several plays that kept Michigan from growing their lead, but the Wolverines attack was too much for Iowa to handle.

Michigan got on the board in the 10th minute on a goal from Erin Reilly. Katie Anderson aggressively drove the ball into the circle and found her teammate Reilly open in front of the net to give her team an early lead. Iowa started the second quarter off strong with some possession in the offensive zone, but things quickly turned into a transition attack and Michigan went up 2-0 in the 23rd minute on a goal from Tina D’Angjolell.

From there, Iowa had to start pushing the ball up the field against a Michigan defense that is known to cut down long passes. A two-goal deficit was too much for the Hawkeyes to overcome and a goal from Kate McLaughlin in the 44th minute on a penalty corner attack put the finishing touches on the first-round matchup.

Now Head Coach Lisa Cellucci and her team will have to wait until Sunday night to see if the selection committee chooses them as one of the eight at-large teams that get to advance to the NCAA Tournament. As things stand currently, it appears the Hawkeyes have a resume that will allow them to sneak into the Field of 18. However, Rutgers or Ohio State winning the Big Ten Tournament would steal a bid, while a St Joseph’s loss in the Atlantic 10 Title Game could also cause issues for the at-large chances of the Hawkeyes.

The NCAA Field Hockey Selection Show is set to be aired on NCAA.com at 9:00pm on Sunday night.