This Labor Day weekend IU’s field hockey team will face No. 7 Wake Forest and UC Davis in the Buckeye Invitational in Columbus, Ohio.
IU comes in off the heels of a 3-2 overtime road victory against Ohio University. The come-from-behind victory was made possible by senior Kate Barber’s hat trick.
“It was frustrating to be losing because I know how hard we have worked,” Barber said. “We pulled ourselves together in the second half. Having momentum going forward really helped us.”
IU Coach Amanda Janney admitted the game against Ohio was a huge spark for the team and believes her squad is ready to face an opponent of Wake Forest’s magnitude.
“We feel good about finding ways to score when we need to,” Janney said. “We will seek to improve from our past two games and really play great on Sunday.”
The matchup will be the first time Janney, who played for Wake Forest in college and scored 21 goals as a center forward for the Demon Deacons, will coach against her alma mater as IU’s head coach.
Senior forward Morgan Dye said the matchup will be a good barometer for where the Hoosiers stand in their conference, as Wake Forest has already gone against two Big Ten opponents this season.
The Demon Deacons lost 2-1 against Iowa and defeated Michigan 2-0 in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge in North Carolina.
Wake Forest will face Ohio State on Friday before the Demon Deacons take on the Hoosiers this weekend.
IU plays UC Davis the day after playing Wake Forest, and regardless of the fact that the level of competition this weekend is similar to that of last weekend, Janney admitted it will be a completely different experience for the Hoosiers.
“Both teams are new for IU’s group,” Janney said. “It is going to be a challenge since unlike Big Ten teams, we really do not know what we are going to face.”
UC Davis lost their last game against Northeastern 3-0 and will play Ohio on Friday.
IU takes on Wake Forest at 12 p.m. Sept. 4 and UC Davis at 1 p.m. the following day. Dye, like freshman forward Sam Scire, who said IU’s training regiment has been tough in the lead up to this weekend on the field and in the weight room, said she is looking forward to extending IU’s win streak.
“I just think it’s a really good opportunity for the team, and if we can get that big win that will just show teams, I guess, really how good we can be this season, how much potential we have,” Dye said.
