Coming off a win against the University of Richmond, Indiana field hockey can prove themselves this weekend against No. 9 Maryland and Ball State University.
Indiana will play Maryland at noon Friday in Bloomington and Ball State at 1 p.m. Sunday in Muncie, Indiana.
With only nine minutes remaining in Indiana’s matchup against Richmond, tension was building at the IU Field Hockey Complex as the score remained tied at zero, despite earning 13 more penalty corners and 16 more shots than Richmond.
Sophomore back Sydney Keld then scored the game winning goal off the Hoosiers 16th penalty corner.
Head coach Kayla Bashore felt that her team deserved this one, and is glad her team got the result they worked hard for.
“I think it's just good to feel like we got the result from all the hard work they put in from both games,” Bashore said.
Indiana looks ahead to another top 10 matchup with the Terps, who come into Friday's game ninth in the country in assists per game and 13th in the country in corners per game.
Indiana will rely on its defense to slow the Maryland attack.
“We got to go back to what is our strength, and go into Maryland with that as our mentality,” Bashore said.
Indiana ranks fifth in the country in shutouts per game. They have four shutout wins this season, including a win against Richmond holding them to two shots on goal.
The Hoosiers are on the road to play the Cardinals Sunday. The teams scrimmage each other earlier in the season with the Hoosiers cruising to a 4-0 win. Four different Hoosiers scored in the game.
“We just have to continue to be disciplined in the things that are working and not think that just because we aren't getting the result, it's not working,” Bashore said.
The Indiana field hockey team is off to its best season start since 2014 with a 5-3 record. The team had a three game win streak this season but also lost three out of the last four games.
Senior forward Peton Becker said the season has ups and downs, and the team has to be connected as a unit and trust one another.
“I think that we’re really trusting the process and trusting each other along the way,'' Becker said. “I’m really focusing on making sure that they feel part of the team as well, so just keeping that family kind of connection goes on and off the field.”
Indiana will take to the turf again at noon Friday against Maryland at the IU Field Hockey Complex. Indiana then heads on the road to play against Ball State at 1 p.m. Sunday at Scheumann Stadium in Muncie, Indiana.
