Indiana field hockey has not scored a goal at Lakeside Field in Evanston, Illinois, since Oct. 6, 2017, and the Cream and Crimson did not break the streak Friday.
The Hoosiers gave up five unanswered goals to No. 1 Northwestern and fell to 0-2 in the Big Ten.
Northwestern’s offense attacked Indiana freshman goalkeeper Kai Killian — who started her first contest since a 4-3 win on Sept. 1 against the University of Maine — all game. Northwestern had eight shots on goal, while Indiana’s offense could only muster up four. The Wildcats also drew six penalty corners, and Indiana only saw two throughout the contest.
Indiana senior midfielder Anna Mozeleski got the game’s first shot on goal in the fourth minute, but Northwestern redshirt first-year goalkeeper Juliana Boon saved her attempt. Boon finished the game with three saves and was subbed out for the first time this season in the 54th minute for redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Faye Post.
The Wildcats had the first goal of the match in the seventh minute. A foul inside the scoring circle was called on Indiana sophomore forward Mijntje Hagen to give Northwestern a penalty corner. A shot by sophomore midfielder Laura Salamanca went wide, but the Wildcats received another corner. This time, junior forward Ashley Sessa took the corner and found graduate midfielder Maddie Zimmer to set up junior back Ilse Tromp for the goal.
In the 14th minute, Northwestern attacked again. Zimmer got a contested chance on goal and slid the ball under Killian’s legs to double Northwestern’s lead.
The Northwestern offense continued its offensive blitz on Indiana’s defense to start the second quarter. The Wildcats drew a penalty corner in the 16th and 20th minutes, but both shots by Tromp did not find the back of the net.
However, Sessa increased Northwestern's lead in the 21st minute. Junior forward Olivia Bent-Cole got behind every Hoosier on the field and made a quick pass to Sessa for an open goal. It only took Sessa 53 seconds to get back on the scoresheet. She deflected a shot from junior forward Piper Borz into the net to give Northwestern a 4-0 advantage.
Indiana started the second half on the attack. Junior midfielder Inés Garcia Prado’s shot in the 31st minute was saved by Boon. The Hoosiers drew a corner 13 seconds later after Tromp made contact with freshman forward Celia Arroyo Cabezudo in the scoring circle. However, Indiana could not capitalize on the scoring chance as Arroyo Cabezudo’s shot was blocked.
The Hoosiers almost went down two players after a two-minute green card on freshman forward Molly Stutte saw her leave the field in the 37th minute. Then, Hagen's stick hit Northwestern junior midfielder Ella Kokinis in the face. However, after a lengthy review, the officials decided to not give out any penalty cards.
In the 43rd minute, Northwestern increased its lead to 5-0 after a goal by Bent-Cole. A save by Killian off a penalty corner by the Wildcats moved the ball back to the 25-yard line. Bent-Cole received a pass and a turnaround slap shot found the back of the net.
Indiana received its second penalty corner of the game in the 51st minute. A misdirection by Garcia Prado and Hagen set up redshirt sophomore back Kate Longo, but her shot went wide right of the goal.
Killian made a diving save to stop a wide-open shot attempt by Borz in the 54th minute, and a wide shot in the 59th minute off a penalty corner by Tromp kept the Indiana deficit at 0-5.
Indiana will not play another Big Ten opponent until a home game on Oct. 10 against Rutgers, but the Hoosiers return to Deborah Tobias Field on Oct. 3 against the University of California, Davis.
Follow reporter Sean McAvoy (@sean_mc07 and semcavoy@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana field hockey season.
