It was a near perfect week for Hawkeye Olympic sports as they continued through their early schedule. There's lots to cover so let's jump right in.
Olympic Spotlight: Iowa Soccer
Iowa soccer picked up another win last week, beating Baylor (5-2) 3-0 on Senior Night to pick up their third straight win and improve their record to 4-0-2 on the season.
After a scoreless opening half, the Hawkeyes scored first when Rielee Fetty headed home a corner in the 56th minute to give the Hawkeyes a 1-0 lead
Freshman phenom Berit Parten added an insurance goal in the 84th minute and Maggie Johnston added an 89th minute penalty kick goal to seal the 3-0 result.
It took the Hawkeyes a bit to break through, but they dominated throughout against a tough Baylor team. They outshot the Bears 21-7, took 13 corner kicks to Baylor's two, and didn't allow a single shot in the first half. The Bears did generate two great chances in the 2nd half, but goalie Macy Enneking came up with two huge saves to preserve the clean sheet, the fourth of the young season.
Enneking has been a wall at the back for the Hawkeyes and her big saves earned her a second straight Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Week honors.
The Hawkeyes have clearly leveled up in terms of talent this year. They are relying less and less on opportunistic chances and creating more and more chances of their own. There's confidence when the team is on the ball and Enneking has been a star at the back. Having a goalie who can clean up mistakes is huge, especially early in the season while the team is still figuring out exactly how they want to play.
There are three Big Ten teams ranked in the top ten so the conference season will be tough sledding, but the Hawkeyes look better prepared than in recent years to hang with the top of the conference. Iowa should be shooting for a top seed in this year's Big Ten Tournament and an NCAA win or two should be the goal for one of the most talented groups the Hawkeyes have ever had.
Iowa moved up to #17 in the newly-released coaches poll. The Hawks will look to continue their hot start when Nebraska (3-3) comes to town on Thursday (7:00, BTN+).
Field Hockey
#6 Iowa field hockey (2-1) earned their first home win of the season last week, beating Miami (OH) (2-1) 2-0 on Friday afternoon. Like the soccer team, the Hawkeyes were in control early but couldn't find a goal in the first half. Dionne van Aalsum put the Hawkeyes on the board in the third off a penalty corner and Lieve van Kessel followed up in short order to give the Hawkeyes a 2-0 lead, and ultimately, the win.
Coach Cellucci praised the Hawkeyes for the win but wanted to see the team put it together earlier in the match. The defense has looked strong for the Hawkeyes, but when they allow inferior teams to hang around, it opens the door for upsets and tough losses.
Against Wake Forest (0-3), it took a shootout before the Hawkeyes could find a goal and Iowa didn't score until the fourth quarter against #2 North Carolina (4-0). Playing even or on the back foot is totally different than the pressure a lead puts on opponents.
Coach Cellucci thought they were close in her postgame remarks, so hopefully the Hawkeyes will continue to tune up their execution in the final third before they head to conference play on September 20th against Northwestern (3:00, BTN).
They'll face Delaware on Sunday (12:00, BTN+) before conference play begins.
Volleyball
Hawkeye volleyball (4-1) went 2-1 last week at the Hawkeye Invitational, falling to San Jose State (5-0) before rebounding to beat Delaware (2-3) and sweep Cal Baptist (0-6).
Sloppy play in the home opener doomed the Hawkeyes against the Spartans. Iowa dropped the first set 25-16 and the 2nd 25-21. They bounced back to take the 3rd 26-24, but serving errors stunted any momentum in the 4th set and the Spartans pulled away to win 25-19. Michelle Urqhardt notched a double-double with 14 kills and 10 digs and setter Claire Ammeraal put up 41 assists in the match. Iowa missed 16 serves in the match, hindering their ability to put together big runs.
Iowa looked like they were in for another tough match against Delaware, dropping the 1st set 25-18. The Hawkeyes bounced back to take the 2nd 25-21, but struggled again in the 3rd set, falling 25-13. Iowa looked poised to drop their second straight match, but instead fought back to take the 4th set 25-13 and then won the decisive 5th set 15-7 to seal the comeback win.
Ammeraal earned another double-double in the match--and missed the triple-double by only two kills--and Urqhardt was a key part of the Hawkeye comeback, leading a 6-0 run at the service line in the momentum-shifting fourth set. It was an impressive show of resilience for the Hawkeyes, but they'll no doubt want to improve on their serve receive and find more offense to avoid the big holes they often found themselves in through Friday's matches.
Saturday was a better day for the Hawkeyes, sweeping Cal Baptist comfortably, 25-17, 25-22 and 25-21. Freshman Dominique Phillips reached double-digit kills for the first time in her career and fellow first-year Malu Garcia hit .750, notching 9 kills on 12 swings. Ammeraal was again near a triple-double and the Hawkeyes avoided giving up any big runs that left them in a big hole.
With so many newcomers, it will take time for the Hawkeyes to find the most effective combination. Ammeraal provides a solid floor with her ability to distribute and be an offensive threat of her own, but too often on Friday the Hawkeyes had opportunities to end a point but couldn't come up with the kill.
The two freshmen looked impressive on Saturday and should continue to see opportunities, while Urqhardt and sophomore Hannah Whittingstall have been consistent contributors as well. If the Hawkeyes can avoid some of the errors in serve receive and find the right lineup to take advantage of their offensive opportunities, they'll continue to see better results.
The Hawkeyes will be back on the court Wednesday when they take on Iowa State (6:30, ESPN+).
Golf
Iowa men's golf finished 4th at the Gopher Invite last weekend, while the women's team is in a strong position after two rounds at the Badger Invitational.
Gage Messingham and Noah Kent led the way on the men's side, finishing in 9th (+1) and 13th (+2) respectively. Max Tjoa was close behind at +4, finishing 17th. The Hawks led after two rounds, but a tough final round saw the Hawkeyes slide down to 4th.
The women's team has two Hawkeyes in the top 15 after two rounds. Paula Miranda and Ximena Benites are both tied for 15th at +4. The team is in a tie for 6th after dropping their team score by four shots from round one to round two. They'll finish up the tournament on Tuesday.