Hoosiers ready to face Ohio State after Louisville loss

Close, so close. The IU field hockey team (2-8) will use those words for motivation as they prepare to face No. 20 Ohio State Saturday following their heartbreaking, 2-1 double overtime loss to No. 9 Louisville Wednesday. Although the loss to the Cardinals was discouraging, coach Amy Robertson said there were many positives she hopes will carry over to Saturday's contest with the Buckeyes.\n"We're starting to play more as a team," Robertson said. "The great thing is that we're playing to win, which we haven't necessarily done in the past. We are getting closer to our potential, but we still keep getting better and better in the last few games."\nThe Hoosiers will look to continue showcasing their defensive juggernaut. Senior goalkeeper Molly Pulkrabek, who was peppered with 21 shots, and freshman defensive back Morgan Albini were instrumental in holding the No. 20 Cardinals scoreless until the last minute of regulation. Robertson said she thinks IU's zone attack can continue its impressive play Saturday against OSU.\n"Our ability to defend as a team has increased," Robertson said. "I think it's really hard to go direct against our team because our zone is more organized and more tight. You are going to have to move the ball against us in order to penetrate, and that's really positive because everyone has an effect."\nAlbini agreed, and said a strong defense will only help the offense too.\n"I thought we played really well as a unit," Albini said. "We really pulled together, and I think we are going to continue with our strong passing game. We played really well defensively, and that has helped our offense out as well." \nFor the Hoosiers to be successful defensively, they will have to counter a strong Buckeye attack led by junior Vanessa Immordino. Immordino leads OSU with five goals and four assists, and has 25 shots on goal. \n"We need to play low defensively," Albini said, "keeping our sticks on the ground and being ready for anything with total anticipation."\nOffensively, Robertson said she hopes to continue an attack that has scored 11 goals in 2002 on only 65 shots. The Hoosier's offensive attack, which has been effective when they've had their chances, will look for more scoring opportunities against the Buckeyes. Robertson said increasing help from the midfield will provide IU with an offensive advantage and increased opportunities. \n"I've been noticing each game that the midfield now is becoming more and more involved in the attack," Robertson said. "They're all becoming weapons."\nRobertson credits freshman midfielder Mallory Reabold and sophomore midfielders Kayla Bashore and Ryan Woolsey as key contributors Wednesday. Robertson said she hopes she will see even better production Saturday.\n"They're really good at coming through and giving us opportunities and keeping numbers up at that end," Robertson said.\nReabold said she thinks increased Hoosier cohesiveness will help.\n"We are working together as a unit," she explained. "We talked a lot more than usual (Wednesday), and we were pumped up and ready to play."\nRobertson said she doesn't believe her team will have a hard time preparing for the Buckeyes after their tough loss. \n"I don't have any concerns," she said. "I think this is just going to make us even hungrier. And it's our first Big Ten matchup at home, so we have a lot of factors to our advantage."\nIU faces off against Ohio State at 3 p.m. Saturday at Mellencamp Pavilion.