Indiana Meets No. 15 Wake Forest, Villanova in Keystone State

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Hoosiers have been looking forward to this road trip since announcing their 2017 schedule.

Although Indiana (0-2) believes in the home turf advantage they have at the IU Field Hockey Complex, there isn't a player or coach on the roster from the Hoosier State. Most of the team—11 players and two coaches—hails from Pennsylvania or New Jersey.

This weekend, those team members return to the comforts of home with two games in Pennsylvania. Friday's game against No. 15 Wake Forest (1-1) at Penn State is a homecoming for Nora Aucker and Savannah Bucher, both from nearby Selinsgrove, and freshman Shelby Querry, who came to Bloomington from State College this summer. Grace Sensenig and Kelsey Giese return to Philadelphia with Monday's game at Villanova (0-2) along with Ciara Girouard, who grew up just across the state line in New Jersey.

"Bringing the team back to Pennsylvania is fun for me," Janney said. "I haven't been back to Philadelphia since I was coaching there, so to play one of the Philly City 6 teams is exciting for us. That city has such a good grit to their play, they're aggressive, and I know it's going to be a battle on Monday."

This is a significant weekend slate for Janney, who just began her third season at the helm of Indiana's field hockey program. Janney is highly familiar with Villanova, one of Philadelphia's "City 6" institutions, after spending 12 years of her coaching career in the de facto city league: two years as an assistant at Pennsylvania before 10 seasons as Temple's head coach.

But Friday's game against Wake Forest brings additional meaning. Janney began her collegiate field hockey career as a player at Wake Forest (1995-98) and her head coach, Jennifer Averill, still holds the reigns in Winston-Salem. Averill holds a special place of influence for Janney, as the Averill built the Demon Deacons into a national power from the ground up over the last 25 seasons.

"I've learned so much from her," Janney said of her former head coach. "I'm trying to teach the same smart passing game, the same finesse hockey as they teach at Wake. We have high expectations for our team, especially with how well we played against them last year."

More than the emotional factors that come with this Labor Day weekend slate, the Hoosiers hope to right the ship on the turf. Indiana seeks their first win of the season after a tough slate last weekend at Louisville's Trager Stadium, where they took on two top-10 teams including the defending NCAA Champions.

Indiana opens on Friday with chance to win their first-ever game against Wake Forest after coming close last season, a narrow 2-1 defeat in Columbus, Ohio. Monday's game at Villanova will be their fourth all-time against the Wildcats and first in five seasons, having won all three of the previous meetings.

The Hoosiers are certain to make memories this weekend. They expect an outpouring of support from family members, friends, and former teammates as they play in places so familiar to many players and coaches. But they haven't lost sight of this weekend's main goal: getting some wins on the board before they return to Bloomington for their home opener next weekend against Central Michigan.

"We just have a few minor fixes and tweaks for this weekend, after watching the film from last week," said senior goalkeeper Katie Johnson. "We're rolling in practice this week, and we're anxious to get out there, make some changes on the field, and get a win."

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Indiana Meets No. 15 Wake Forest, Villanova in Keystone State

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Players Mentioned

Nora Aucker

Savannah Bucher

Kelsey Giese

Ciara Girouard

Katie Johnson

Shelby Querry

Grace Sensenig