Rutgers field hockey hits road for games against No. 2 Northwestern, Indiana
The Rutgers field hockey team was in desperate need of a win after losses to Maryland and Princeton last week, and it delivered with a massive 3-2 win at home over then-No. 7 Iowa. Now, the Scarlet Knights (4-4, 1-1) prepare for another road trip to take on Northwestern and Indiana. Below is a breakdown of Rutgers and its two opponents for the weekend excursion.
Northwestern Wildcats - Friday at 4 p.m.
The first stop of the weekend will be out in Evanston, Illinois, to face the second-best team in the country. The Wildcats (10-0, 3-0) have yet to lose a game, with some notable wins over then-No. 4 Iowa, then-No. 5 Maryland and then-No. 16 Princeton.
No. 2 Northwestern has been on fire on offense, with four players currently sitting at 4 goals or more. Leading the charge is Ashley Sessa with 7 goals, followed by Ilsie Tromp, Maddie Zimmer and Olivia Bent-Cole, all with 4.
It doesn't stop at goals. The Wildcats are playing great team field hockey, recording 20 assists through their first 10 games. Sessa again leads Northwestern with six assists, tied with Lauren Hunter for the most on the team.
Defending the net against the fierce Wildcat attack will be redshirt senior goalkeeper Sophia Howard. Howard has allowed 14 goals this season, saving 28 shots in her eight games played.
The goalkeeper for Northwestern, Annabel Skubisz, has put up otherworldly numbers throughout the season so far. Skubisz has 38 saves, and just 3 goals scored against her, saving approximately 93 percent of the shots aimed at her net.
Indiana Hoosiers - Sunday at noon
Following the trip to Illinois, the Knights will travel a tad closer to home for a Sunday contest in Bloomington, Indiana. The Hoosiers (3-5, 0-2) should be an easier opponent for Rutgers, but that doesn't mean Indiana is a pushover.
The pair of senior midfielder Guillermina Causarano and graduate student forward Kara Heck will need to continue leading the offensive charge for the Knights. Causarano leads Rutgers with 6 goals and just as many assists. Heck is right behind her in goals with 4, and senior midfielder Paulina Niklaus and freshman forward Sophie Kuiper each have three assists.
Causarano and company will be looking to score in a net defended by Sadie Canelli. Canelli has only played 5 of the Hoosiers' 8 games this season but has 18 saves, and just 5 goals conceded, three of which came in a 3-2 loss to then-No. 19 Penn State last weekend.
The Indiana attack largely consists of three players. Yip van Wonderen, Inés Garcia Prado and Sydney Keld are the primary shot takers for the Hoosiers, accounting for 53 of Indiana's 123 shots on the season. Van Wonderen has the most goals with 4, followed by Garcia Prado and Keld, each with 3.
The Knights' daunting business trip can be streamed on Big Ten Plus. The match against the Wildcats starts at 4 p.m. on Friday, and the game versus Indiana will take place Sunday at noon.
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