Indiana field hockey struggled to put the ball in the cage early against Ball State University but scored seven unanswered goals in the final three quarters to defeat the Cardinals 7-1 in Muncie, Indiana.
The Hoosiers controlled possession from the start, but early opportunities failed to result in goals. Indiana recorded 10 shots and six shots on goal in the first quarter while earning five penalty corners, but Cardinals senior goalkeeper Carleigh Hofelich kept the game scoreless.
Ball State turned the defense into offense and eventually struck first.
Junior forward/midfielder GiGi Ranoldo scored off a penalty corner with 14:35 remaining in the second quarter to give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead, despite Indiana holding a 13-1 advantage in shots at the time.
The goal appeared to wake up the Hoosiers' offense.
Indiana responded with three goals in the final five minutes of the first half, turning its early pressure into production.
Junior forward/midfielder Mijntje Hagen tied the game with 5:34 remaining in the second quarter, scoring off a penalty corner. Sophomore forward Celia Arroyo Cabezudo and senior forward/midfielder Theresa Ricci assisted on the goal.
Hagen scored again less than two minutes later to give Indiana its first lead of the game, with Arroyo Cabezudo and Inés Garcia Prado providing the assists.
Then the game became the Molly Stutte show.
The sophomore forward/midfielder scored with 40 seconds remaining in the half to give Indiana a 3-1 lead. She carried the momentum into the third quarter — scoring twice more to complete her hat trick. Her first with the Hoosiers.
Stutte's second goal came with 13:35 remaining in the third quarter. She found the back of the cage again with 7:44 remaining in the period. The three goals gave her six in the season thus far.
Arroyo Cabezudo added another goal with 1:28 remaining in the third quarter, extending Indiana's lead to 6-1. It was her fifth goal of the season.
Hagen added her third goal of the game with 1:55 remaining in the fourth quarter, completing her hat trick and capping Indiana's 7-1 victory.
Indiana finished with 36 shots, including 27 on goal, and 17 penalty corners. Ball State recorded three shots, all on goal.
Indiana head coach Kayla Bashore said the Hoosiers' pressing lines and composure improved throughout the game.
“We were just working on our pressing lines, going into the second quarter, just shifting some things around, but, again, just having that ability to build the play with some composure, I thought that got better as the game went on,” Bashore said postgame on the ESPN+ broadcast.
The win extended Indiana's winning streak to four games. The Hoosiers will open Big Ten play against No. 2 Iowa at 6 p.m. Sept. 18, in Iowa City, Iowa. The game will stream on B1G+.
“This year, it'll be a really great test for us,” Bashore said. “This team has a lot of potential. They have a lot of ability to not just build the play out, but to counterattack from the good pressing lines.”
Follow reporter Jack Davis (@JackDavis0006 and jjd5@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana field hockey season.
