Hoosiers End Preseason With Ball State Scrimmage

Saturday, August 18

Bloomington, IN

1 PM

Indiana University

Ball State

Hoosiers End Preseason With Ball State Scrimmage

8/19/2018 7:29:00 PM | Field Hockey

Postgame Quotes

Weiss leads creative Indiana offensive front

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Hoosiers put the finishing touches on their 2018 preseason with Saturday's scrimmage at home against Ball State. A tenacious second half attack helped Indiana pull away for wins in the 70-minute scrimmage, the simulated overtime periods, and their shootout simulation.

From front to back, the Hoosiers passed the test—enduring two 90-minute games in a 24-hour stretch. And they found a second wind in the late stages against the Cardinals.

"It's good to see the depth and the energy off of the bench," said head coach Amanda Janney Misselhorn. "We're deeper than we've ever been and the energy was still high in the second overtime. That gives us a lot of great options for different combinations on the field, and it's great to see different people connecting with each other."

It was Indiana generating most of the first half chances but neither team could puncture the deadlock until the final minute. Continued pressure from the IU attack led to the first goal of the game, a tap-in from a rebounded save that fell to Sheridan Weiss.

That changed the message for both sides as they hit the halftime break. And when they returned to the turf, the Hoosiers took off.

Elle Hempt drilled a straight shot into the boards in the 38^th minute, with assists going to Nora Aucker and Rylee Pearson. On IU's next corner, in the 45^th minute, Aucker hammered a shot from the air on a deflected save.

"We got some practice in, the ability to try different things out on our penalty corners," said Janney Misselhorn. "We want that to be a huge strength of ours and we have some great hitters, so it's nice to see us executing."

Indiana's goal of the day came after 52 minutes, when the Hoosiers had a personnel advantage on a fast break. Peyton Becker led Weiss on a pass to the middle of the circle, and Weiss finished with a lunging jab that lobbed over the save attempt into the net.

Weiss completed the hat trick in the overtime simulation, using a skill to clear space with her back to the goalkeeper.

"We're working with each other to not only make the runs we need, but working with our midfield and defenders whether we're trying to move the ball forward or defend," Weiss said. "Communication has been key."

Indiana will take away some encouraging notes from their scrimmage week. Players from the senior class to newcomers are making impacts. Both goalkeepers—Sachi Ananias and Shelby Querry—held their own and excelled in their shootout simulations. And the Hoosiers are finding goals both in the field and from penalty corners.

"I think we've seen a nice progression of all the lines starting to work together cohesively," said Hempt. "We've had an awesome freshman class—some are starting, some sparks off of the bench—and overall we're playing as a nice unit. I'm looking forward to seeing how we progress."

With the scrimmage weekend in the books, the 2018 regular season officially begins. Indiana will kick off the year with their home opener on Friday, August 24 against Louisville at 3:00 p.m. ET. Fans can follow the action on BTN Plus / BTN2Go.com or on Twitter @IndianaFH.