It was another tough week for the Hawkeyes on the field, but they did receive some great news off the field, as Iowa soccer earned its best-ever postseason seed in the NCAA Tournament.

As always, there's lots to cover so let's jump right in.

Coming off one of the best seasons in school history, Iowa soccer (13-2-4, 8-2-1) earned their best-ever seed in the NCAA Tournament on Monday, a #3 seed in the top-left quad of the bracket. The seeding, announced on Monday, also gives Iowa a home game in the first round, marking the first time in school history they've earned that honor in back-to-back seasons.

SEE ALSO: Full 2024 NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament Bracket

The Hawkeyes will host 14-seed Missouri State on Friday (6:00 PM CT, ESPN+). The Bears are 13-4-3 on the year and come into the tournament as the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament champions. Against their three strongest opponents during the regular season, Missouri State fell 2-0 to Missouri, 4-0 to 8-seed Saint Louis, and 8-0 to Oklahoma.

The Hawks come into the match off a shootout loss to Washington (10-6-3) in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament and a 2-1 loss to Minnesota (12-4-3) in the regular season finale. Still, Iowa is well-positioned to make a run in the NCAA Tournament.

All-Big Ten Tournament goalie and Iowa's all-time wins leader Macy Enneking has been a consistent standout throughout the season and the emergence of goal scorers like freshman Berit Parten has turned Iowa's defensive mindset into offensive potency. Iowa set a program record with four ranked wins during the regular season and is two wins away from the program record for wins in a season.

If the Hawkeyes make it past Missouri State they'll face either 6th-seed Georgetown (12-3-4) or 11-seed Fairfield (18-2-1). The Hoyas played 4th-seeded Penn State (12-6-3) to a 0-0 draw back in September, two weeks before the Hawkeyes beat the Nittany Lions 2-1. Fairfield lost its lone ranked match of the season, falling 3-0 to then #24 Texas A&M (8-9-2).

If Iowa makes it to the Sweet 16, they'd likely earn a date with Big Ten Tournament Champions and #2 seed UCLA (16-3-3). The Hawkeyes have a real shot of putting an incredible finishing touch on what has already been one of the best seasons in school history.

The group has the talent and the experience to make a deep run in the tournament. This is now the third NCAA Tournament for the team's seniors and every player outside of the freshmen and transfers knows what it takes to win from last year's tournament berth. Throughout head coach Dave Dianni's tenure, the Hawkeyes have played their best when the lights are brightest. If that holds again this year, we could be in for something really special.

Tickets for the first-round match are available for purchase here.

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Iowa field hockey (9-9, 2-6) fell 3-2 in a shootout to #5 Maryland on Thursday in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.

The Hawkeyes and Terps each had a slew of chances during regulation, but neither team found the back of the net. Hawkeye goalie Mia Magnotta was incredible in the game, piling up 17 saves on 31 Maryland shots in an effort that earned her a spot on the All-Tournament team (even more impressive considering she only played in one game).

After four quarters and two overtimes proved insufficient, the teams headed for a shootout, where Maryland ultimately prevailed 3-2. While the defense was admirable throughout the game, Iowa struggled to establish itself in the offensive zone after the first period and was ultimately outshot 31-7 and faced ten penalty corners while earning just three.

The Hawkeyes season is likely over after Thursday's loss, a disappointing end to a season of retooling. Injuries exacerbated a roster already replacing considerable experience and Iowa never could find its footing against the nation's best teams. There were flashes of greatness from the Hawks, including a 3-0 upset win over #3 Ohio State, but the team struggled to control the tempo against top opponents and often found themselves far behind in the shot and penalty corner columns.

Still, the talent is evident throughout the roster and the team is coached by one of the nation's best in Lisa Cellucci. There's no substitute for experience and many of Iowa's underclassmen gained a lot of it this season playing some of the best teams in the country. With only two fifth-year seniors (albeit major contributors in Alex Wesneski and Harper Dunne), the Hawkeyes can build continuity with the current roster. Add in an offseason to recover and continue to improve, and I expect the Hawkeyes to bounce back in a big way in the 2025 season.

Hawkeye volleyball (9-17, 3-11) dropped both matches last week, falling 3-0 to #7 Wisconsin (18-5, 12-2) and 3-1 to Northwestern (5-17, 3-11).

Staying with one of the best teams in the country was always going to be a tough task for the Hawkeyes, especially on the road in Madison. Malu Garcia continued her strong freshman campaign with another double-double (12 kills, 11 digs), but the Badgers controlled the match throughout. The Badgers hit almost .400 in the match, compared to the Hawkeyes' .087 hitting percentage, and notched 10 blocks. Iowa hung tough at the start of the 2nd set, tying the set at 14, but the Badgers' attacking firepower proved too much and Wisconsin pulled away in each of the three sets, winning 25-15, 25-17, and 25-13.

The Hawks had a chance to take Sunday's match against Northwestern, but gave up a few costly runs in the first and fourth sets that proved to be too much to overcome. The Hawkeyes were in control for much of the first set, but gave up a 5-0 run after leading 23-20 to ultimately give the Wildcats the set. Iowa bounced back to dominate set two, but a 4-1 run in set three pushed that set out of reach and a 6-1 run in the middle of set four allowed Northwestern to take the match.

Hannah Wittingstall was impressive on the attack, scoring a career-high 16 kills while hitting .565 and adding in four aces for good measure.

Consistency continues to be the key for the Hawkeyes. The talent gap between Iowa and teams like Wisconsin will make those matches difficult, but the Hawks had a shot to put away Northwestern multiple times on Sunday. In one set, they stayed consistent and pulled away, in the other, a late Northwestern run allowed the Cats to steal a set.

The Hawkeyes will be back on the court Thursday when they host Indiana (12-12, 5-9) (6:00, BTN+) before Michigan State (5-20, 2-12) comes to town on Sunday (2:00, BTN+).

Hawkeye swimming and diving fell 192-108 against #23 Minnesota on Friday, Iowa's first loss of the season.

Olivia Swalley was a standout for Iowa, picking up three of the team's five wins on the night. Swalley won both the 100m and 200m breaststroke (1:03.48 and 2:17.51 respectively) and earned first in the 400IM (4:17.46) as well. Iowa's other event wins came from diver Makayla Hugbanks, who posted a season-high 325.43 to win the 3m dive and won the 1m dive with a score of 282.90.

The Hawkeyes will be back in the pool on November 21st when they host the Hawkeye Invitational.