Indiana Stuns No. 6 Northwestern, 2-1

Friday, October 7

Bloomington, IN

3 PM

Indiana University

(7-6)

Northwestern

(10-3)

Northwestern

Indiana

10/7/2016 8:08:00 PM | Field Hockey

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Postgame Quotes Highlights

Aucker provides game-winner on first career score

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Hoosiers sparked their first two-game home weekend of the season with a gripping 2-1 upset win over No. 6 Northwestern. Sophomore defender Nora Aucker made sense of a chaotic penalty corner in the 50^th minute to push the Hoosiers (7-6, 2-2) to their first win over a ranked opponent this season, while the Wildcats (10-2, 4-1) suffered their first Big Ten defeat.

"It was a great team win today," said Aucker, who scored her first career goal to give Indiana the win. "There were big plays from everybody. We had a different starting lineup than usual, but the roles were filled. It was a great showing from everybody and I think it proves a lot for our program."

The Hoosier's victory over sixth-ranked Northwestern is their first top-10 win opponent in head coach Amanda Janney's tenure with Indiana, and it's the highest ranked win since beating No. 5 Duke at home in 2014. It's also, as Janney noted, their first triumph in their many valiant efforts against top-ranked competition this season.

"I'm so proud of our team and our seniors today," Janney said. "This was a great game for us, because we've been playing great hockey and haven't gotten the results lately against the top-10 teams. Our team has been fighting hard and working at practice, so it's rewarding to see it all come into play today."

Aucker's game winner came on Indiana's third and final penalty corner of the afternoon. With the game knotted at 1-1, Aucker inserted the corner towards Elle Hempt's straight shot. The Northwestern defense broke up Hempt's shot, but Sam Scire collected the rebound and found Aucker across the goalmouth. The sophomore inserter finished her chance with aplomb, lifting the ball into the back of the net.

"I'm so happy for Nora," Janney said. "She's one of those blue-collar, hard-working players that gets it done in the backfield. To see her rewarded with a goal is a big moment for her as a sophomore."

It was Indiana who put the pressure on the sixth-ranked Wildcats after scoring the opening goal in the 18^th minute. The Hoosiers earned their first two corner opportunities of the game on back-to-back plays, and on the latter, Ciara Girouard cleaned up a rebound for her fourth goal of the season.

Girouard, a freshman who has started in all 13 games this season, has been on a tear since she scored her first career goal two weeks ago. In the Hoosiers' last four games, beginning with her account-opening two scores at Central Michigan, Girouard has tallied four goals on eight shot attempts.

"I think it's a confidence thing," Girouard said. "Coming in as a freshman, it's not the easiest making that adjustment to the college game, but after scoring that first goal I gained a lot of confidence."

The Wildcats evened the score line before halftime with Lily Katzman's career opener in the 23^rd minute. After that, the Hoosiers held one of the top offenses in the country to just five shot attempts in the second half. They held the Wildcats to the final whistle, even in the final three minutes when Northwestern pulled their goalkeeper for a personnel advantage.

"Our defense played phenomenally, and they made so many huge saves," Janney said. "Noëlle Rother made some saves where I thought the ball was going in, and she would make that dive for the save. Our defense did their job today and gave us the opportunity to get some goals."

Rother put in a stingy shift between the pipes, racking up 10 saves in the game. Some of her saves, as Janney noted, seemed beyond possibility, like her reflex parry on Puck Pentenga's fast break strike in the 42^nd minute. Rother followed that save with another block out of play, after Saar de Brij collected the rebound.

"We've been at constant work on our defense," Aucker said. "And that result comes from putting into practice what we train for every day."

Up Next: Indiana (7-6, 2-2 Big Ten) vs. No. 14 Boston College (5-6, 2-3 ACC)
Sunday, October 9 • 12:00 p.m. ET • Watch: BTN2Go.com • Live Stats
Bloomington, Ind. • IU Field Hockey Complex

The weekend is far from over for the Hoosiers, who turn around in less than two days to host the No. 14 Boston College Eagles. The game is their third of four versus ACC competition this season, and the Hoosiers are seeking their first win over an ACC opponent since their win over No. 5 Duke on October 5, 2014.

Janney hopes that, after such a resounding win over one of the top teams in the Big Ten and the nation, the Hoosiers see the fruits of their hard work during the practice week, and that their ability to play well against tough competition has a payoff.

"It's the confidence we needed to know that we've been playing great hockey, that we have so many talented players on our team," Janney said. "We just didn't get the results in our other games against the top 10. We know that we're capable of a good win like this, with great defense today, it's going to carry us far, hopefully in the postseason."