Indiana University Athletics
Indiana Hits The Road For Big Weekend Down South
9/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Sept. 10, 2008
Head coach Amy Robertson leads her team back to Winston-Salem where she was an assistant coach at Wake Forest for three years under Jennifer Averill. Indiana assistant coach Kelly Doton played at Wake Forest under Averill as well. The Hoosiers will play two games on the weekend, matching up with the Ohio Bobcats on Saturday, Sept. 13 and the fourth-ranked Demon Deacons on Sunday.
The Hoosiers look to avenge a pair of 2007 one-goal losses. The Hoosiers fell to the Bobcats by a score of 0-1 and to the Demon Deacons with a 1-2 tally. A win over the Bobcats would increase the Hoosiers lead in the all-time series, which stands at 2-1. Indiana is seeking its first win over Wake Forest in what will be the fifth meeting between the two schools.
MANN GARNERS WEEKLY ACCOLADE
Indiana sophomore goalkeeper Alex Mann was named Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. The recognition comes on the heels of two victories in St. Louis, including a shut out win over the Saint Louis Billikens.
Against the Billikens, Mann played a complete game and recorded her first shutout as a Hoosier. Her five saves in the game are a season high for Indiana. Mann has 13 saves on the season, averaging just over three a game. The Souderton, Pa. native recorded eight saves in two games over the weekend, allowing only one goal to Missouri State.
Head coach Amy Robertson said of Mann's shutout effort, "We were tested. I give a lot of credit to Saint Louis. They found ways to get through our defense here and there, and they tested Alex. She just did a great job. We're really excited, not just for Alex but for the whole team to be recognized as having a goalkeeper that deserves this recognition."
"I think the first part of a great goalkeeper is organizing the defensive front, and she is very comfortable to talk to the backs and make sure they're in the right place and that they're aware of any attackers running in behind them. I think that is the first piece and the other piece is she is very composed back there. You never see her panic. That is one of her best qualities is that she is confident," said Robertson.
This is Mann's first weekly honor and the first defensive accolade for an IU player since Haley Exner brought home the award a year ago this week.
MANN SHUTS OUT THE BILLIKENS
The Indiana field hockey team finished up a two-game slate in St. Louis on Sunday, knocking off the Saint Louis Billikens by a score of 4-0. Sophomore goal keeper Alex Mann picked up her first shutout of the season, recording five saves to keep Saint Louis off the scoreboard.
Four Hoosiers put the ball in the net in the contest, as sophomores Katie Griswold and Lena Grote, freshman Jaclyn Zamudio and junior Elizabeth Schmidt all got on the board. Grote recorded the first tally when she made a diving deflection of a Haley Funk assist in the game's 21st minute. Griswold also assisted on Grote's first goal of the season.
Griswold got the next score as she took a pass from senior Katie Kiper during a scramble in front of the cage and put it past Saint Louis goalie Alex Labarge. The goal, scored in the 45th minute, is Griswold's second of the season.
Zamudio tallied her second score of the season in the game's 52nd minute, when she dribbled in from the right side and put a long shot past Labarge. Schmidt closed the game out with her first goal of the season, when she collected a rebound off of a penalty corner and put it into the left side of the net at the 69:53 mark.
O'CONNELL'S HAT TRICK BESTS THE BEARS
The Hoosiers scored five goals en route to a convincing win over the Bears of Missouri State. Junior Meg O'Connell led the way, scoring three goals in the first game of her weekend homecoming.
O'Connell got the action started in the 16th minute, when she sent a blast from the top of the circle past the Missouri State keeper. IU followed the opening score with two more in the first session. Senior back Danitra Castro increased the Hoosier lead in the 22nd minute off of a penalty corner with assists going to sophomores Katie Griswold and Kelsey Kiper.
O'Connell made sure that Indiana didn't wait very long to get on the board again. Just 1:41 later, she took a pass from Castro and gave it a low ride for her second score from the top of the circle, to send the Hoosiers into the break up 3-0. The St. Louis-native opened the second half in much the same fashion, scoring from the left side in the 42nd minute.
The Bears broke up the shutout in the 47th minute on a goal from Melissa Lantz. Junior forward Alina Valenti put up the games final score to give the Hoosiers a convincing 5-1 victory.
