Indiana University Athletics
No. 9 Hoosiers Set for First NCAA Tournament Run
11/10/2005 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Nov. 10, 2005
NCAA Tournament Notes
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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The 2005 season continues to be a magical one for the Indiana field hockey team. For the first time in the Hoosiers' short six-year existence, Indiana has earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Indiana will face the No. 5 North Carolina Tar Heels in Winston-Salem, N.C. at Wake Forest University. Saturday's IU-UNC matchup is the first meeting between the two schools. If the Hoosiers advance, they will face the winner of host Wake Forest and NorPac champion, California.
The Hoosiers are coming off of their best run in the Big Ten Championship in team history. IU defeated Northwestern then Ohio State to play in the conference championship game against Michigan. Despite a strong second period, IU fell just short of the title to the Wolverines. Additionally, senior midfielder Kayla Bashore was named the Big Ten's Player of the Year. Three other Hoosiers, sophomore goalkeeper Haley Exner and juniors Morgan Miller and Lydia Schrott earned first team All-Big Ten honors. Seniors Morgan Albini and Mallory Reabold were selected to the All-Tournament team for their three-game performances.
The 2005 NCAA Championship will be the eighth tournament appearance head coach Amy Robertson has been apart of as a coach.
Scouting North Carolina
The No. 5 ranked Tar Heels are an impressive 14-6 overall and 2-3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. UNC boasts wins over highly-ranked James Madison (Sept. 9), Old Dominion (Sept. 17), and Boston College (Oct. 8). The Heels have dropped games to Duke (Sept. 23), Maryland (Oct. 23) and Old Dominion (Oct. 29). North Carolina has faced Wake Forest twice this season. In their first meeting on Oct. 1 the Demon Deacons shut out UNC, 2-0, but in the second meeting, the Tar Heels dropped a heart breaker in double overtime. The Hoosiers will be North Carolina's fourth Big Ten foe this season. Against the Big Ten, UNC is 3-0. As of Nov. 6, the Tar Heels are outscoring their opponents 47-22, and are led by Rachel Dawson who has tallied 29 points off 11 goals and seven assists. Heather Kendall and Britt Van Beek follow Dawson in scoring with seven goals a piece. Goalkeeper Katy Tran has a goals against average of 1.13 and has recorded 83 saves.
Scouting Wake Forest
The three-time defending national champion Wake Forest Demon Deacons are looking for their fourth title in five years. Heading into Saturday's matchup with Cal, Wake is ranked second in the NFHCA poll and has recorded a record of 19-1 this year with their only loss coming in the ACC title game against Maryland by a score of 3-2 in regulation. Freshman Christine Suggs leads the Demon Deacons this season, scoring 42 points off 15 goals and 12 assists. Along with Suggs, Haley Scott's 10 goals and six assists have helped Wake Forest to 189 total points this season. Additionally, Kristi Harshman has tallied none goals and one assist. Goalkeeper Kristinia Gagliardi has recorded 39 saves and a goals against average of 0.95. The Demon Deacons are 5-0 over Big Ten opponents this season, including a 4-2 win over Indiana on Sept. 4 in Winston-Salem, N.C. The Hoosiers have faced Wake one other time prior to this season and fell, 6-0.
Scouting California
The Golden Bears are 12-7 overall, 5-1 in the NorPac Conference and ranked No. 20 in the NFHCA top-20 final poll. Cal is the NorPac champion after defeating Pacific 4-0 in the final game. California is overwhelmingly led in scoring by Valentina Godfrid who has recorded 28 goals and 11 assists for 67 points. The next highest scorer is Jennifer Crane who has netted eight goals. Three other Bears have tallied seven goals a piece. Goalkeeper Veronica Sykes has recorded 65 saves and holds a goals against average of 1.50. The Hoosiers and Bears have met three times with Cal holding the 3-0 advantage. In 2004, IU dropped a tough, 3-1, match to the Bears.
Re-Writing History
Indiana's record-breaking year continues as the 2005 Hoosiers keep shattering records. For the first time in program history, Indiana will compete in the NCAA Tournament. The Hoosiers' win over Ohio State (Oct. 14) made the 2005 squad the winningest team in program history. This year's team now holds the single-season record for most goals (60), assists (48), shots (382), goals per game (3.00). The 2005 team also held the longest winning streak (10), longest home win streak (7), consecutive games with a goal (27) and tied the single-season record for most shutout victories (5). Individually, goalkeeper Haley Exner is the single-season leader in victories (16) and after the win over Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament (Nov. 4), Exner is the all-time winningest goalkeeper in program history. Schrott's performance at the Big Tens made her the program's single-season record holder for goals (14) for the second straight year. Senior Kayla Bashore has a string of firsts attached to her name as well. Bashore is the first Hoosier to be named Big Ten Player of the Year and the first player from IU to be selected to both the USA National Field Hockey Team and the North/South Senior All Start game. This season, Indiana earned it's highest and first top-ten ranking on Sept. 27. Hoosier seniors Wiler, Morgan Albini and Nikki Orciuch's 77 career games placed the trio at the top of all-time games played. Additionally, the No. 2-seed at this year's Big Ten Championship is the highest seeding in program history.
Familiar Territory
This weekend's games in Winston-Salem will be all too familiar to head coach Amy Robertson and assistant coach Jemima Cameron.
Robertson served as an assistant coach for Wake Forest for three seasons (1997-1999). During her stint as a Demon Deacon, Robertson helped Wake to one tournament appearance in 1999. During her final season with the Demon Deacons, Robertson coached Cameron.
A three-year letterwinner for the gold and black, Cameron was named the ACC Player of the Year in 2001, a NFHCA third team All-American in 2000, three-time All-ACC selection, two-time All-ACC Tournament Team member and a 2000 NFHCA All-South Region first team pick. Additionally, Cameron was a finalist for the Honda Broderick Award, which is given annually to the National Field Hockey Player of the Year.
While a Demon Deacon, she helped lead the program to three NCAA tournament births, including two Final Four appearances in Cameron's final two years.
Cameron's accomplishments stretched beyond the field. Cameron earned her bachelor's degree in sociology from Wake Forest and was named to the All-ACC Academic Honor Roll in 2001.
Familiar Foes
Of the three teams in Indiana's bracket for the first and second rounds of the tournament, Indiana has faced two of those. Saturday's meeting between IU and North Carolina will be the first game between the two programs. UNC will be the fourth new opponent on the Indiana slate this season.
The Hoosiers have faced Wake Forest twice in the last six years. Indiana is 0-2 against the Demon Deacons. The two teams met on Sept. 4 in Winston Salem, and despite a second half surge by IU, Wake was victorious 4-2.
Indiana has faced California three times with the Bears holding the 3-0 advantage. The last time the two teams met was in Berkeley last year in which Cal won 3-1.
So Much in So Little Time
Six short years ago, Indiana's field hockey program was reinstated. In 2000 under head coach Amy Robertson, the Hoosiers finished the season 1-12 and only scored four goals all season. Six years later in 2005, IU is 16-4 overall, 4-3 in the Big Ten, placed second in both the conference regular season and tournament, earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament and have made their mark as a national field hockey power.
Kentner Stadium
Saturday's game against Cal will be the second time the Hoosiers have played in the beautiful Kentner Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C., this season. Overall, Indiana is 0-1 at Wake Forest. Last time the Hoosiers took the field in Winston-Salem, IU battle back from a 3-0 deficit at the half to raise the score to 3-2 at one point against the Demon Deacons. Scoring for the Hoosiers in the first loss of the season was senior Lesley Wiler and junior Morgan Miller.
Bench Production
Depth has been a key in the Hoosiers' success this season. Solid play from non-starters has helped Indiana to 18 goals and one defensive save in 2005.
The "Ex" Factor
Sophomore goalkeeper Haley Exner is having a standout year for the Hoosiers in net. Exner has notched an impressive three Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors for her outstanding performances. As of Nov. 7, Exner has recorded 108 saves, a goals against average of 1.78 and five shutouts. Against then-No. 9 Ohio State on Oct. 14, Exner posted a career high in saves with 16 in the 2-1 overtime win. Currently, Exner leads the Big Ten in saves and is second in goal against average with 1.65. Additionally, Exner is the all-time winningest goalkeeper in program history with 16 wins to her credit.
Miss October
Sophomore Frederique Meeuwsen, who tallied a team-high 10 goals last season, has turned up the scoring fire power in October. Meeuwsen has scored all five of her goals this season last month alone. The Zuid-Scharwoude, Holland native registered goals at Kent State (Oct. 2), then-No. 9 Ohio State (Oct. 14), versus then-No. 6 Penn State (Oct. 28) and a pair against Miami (Ohio) (Oct. 30).
R-O-C-K in the Mellencamp
The Oct. 28 showdown in Mellencamp Pavilion against then-No. 6 Penn State marked the largest crowd for Indiana field hockey in Mellencamp Pavilion. Nearly 300 fans packed the facility for the Hoosiers' final Big Ten game of the season.
Two Hoosiers Selected as North/South Senior All-Stars
Seniors Kayla Bashore and Mallory Reabold are the first and second Hoosiers to be selected to the NFHCA North/South All-Star game on Nov. 9 in Louisville, Ky. Goalkeeper Molly Pulkrabek was selected as an alternate for the South squad in 2003.
Bashore Named to U.S. National Team
For the first time in program history, a member of the Indiana field hockey team has been named to the USA National Field Hockey Team.
Senior Kayla Bashore has been added to the USA Women's National Team roster. Bashore, who has tallied two points off one goal for the Hoosiers in 2005, played with the USA team in their five-game series against Canada. Along with starting for the Hoosiers, Bashore played with the National Team in Virginia Beach, Va. on Aug. 29 and started in the 1-1 tie on Aug. 31.
Not Just a Face in the Crowd
Senior Kayla Bashore was featured in Sept. 26 Sports Illustrated's "Faces in the Crowd" for her performance so far this season and being the first player from IU to be named to the U.S. National Team.
Hats Off
Junior Lydia Schrott registered Indiana's first hat trick in program history with her three goals in the 3-2 win over Northeastern on Aug. 28.
The program and the season's second ever hat trick was scored by Kayla Bashore on Friday, Sept. 9 win over Pacific. Bashore was the only player to score in the first half.
Bashore, the program's only two-time hat trick scorer. Against Lindenwood on Sept. 25, Bashore netted three consecutive goals in the first half for her second hat trick of her career and the program's third.
Senior Core
The 2005 Indiana field hockey roster boasts six impressive seniors. Morgan Albini, Kayla Bashore, Nikki Orciuch, Mallory Reabold, Lesley Wiler and Ryan Woolsey are all in their final season as Hoosiers.
