Hoosiers Begin Big Ten Play With No. 9 Maryland

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Indiana field hockey team plays the second half of their four-game home stand this weekend, starting with Friday afternoon's Big Ten opener against No. 9 Maryland. The Hoosiers (4-2, 0-0) will also play their annual in-state battle versus Ball State on Sunday, September 17 at 1:00 p.m. ET.

These games are crucial for head coach Amanda Janney and the Hoosiers, who hit the road for five consecutive away games after this weekend double. Both games will stream live courtesy of BTN Student U on BTN2Go.com.

Corner Hits

Home Sweet Home
The Hoosiers rolled through the opening weekend of their home schedule with two victories at the IU Field Hockey Complex, dropping Central Michigan 4-1 before triumphing in overtime against Miami, 3-2. Maddie Latino led the attack with four goals in total, and four different Hoosiers netted goals from penalty corners against the Chippewas. It's the first time since Amanda Janney's arrival in Bloomington that Indiana won their first two home games of the year.

Hoosier Hat Trick Heroes
The last two weekends, Indiana has seen superlative performances from two of their top attackers, Ciara Girouard and Maddie Latino. Girouard registered her first career hat trick at Villanova and won the following Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honor. Latino answered the next weekend, scoring all of IU's goals with a hat trick against Miami and winning that week's Big Ten Offensive Player of the week award.

This is the first time in IU Field Hockey history that Hoosiers won back-to-back offensive conference weekly honors. Latino and Girouard both rank in the national top 20 for scoring average (0.83/game).

Meeting Maryland
The Hoosiers square off for their fourth all-time meeting, all as conference foes. The Terps have won all three meetings, the last two taking place in College Park. The closest clash of the series came in 2015, when Maryland pulled out a 1-0 overtime win that featured 16 saves by Hoosier keeper Noëlle Rother.

The Terrapins are off to a 3-2 start, most recently topping No. 11 Louisville 1-0 at home. Their defender, Bodil Keus, is the reigning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after scoring the decisive goal against Louisville while allowing just one shot on goal.

Clash with the Cardinals
Indiana returns to the turf on Sunday to face Ball State, their in-state counterpart in Division-I field hockey. The Hoosiers are 11-5 in the overall series and have won the last three games against the Cardinals, most recently by a score of 4-2 in 2015.

Worth Noting...
•    The last time Indiana had back-to-back weekends with two home games was in 2014. The Hoosiers faced three ranked teams in that stretch (No. 15 Michigan, No. 5 Duke, No. 20 Michigan State), pulling out the upset against Duke and Michigan State.
•    The Hoosiers are unbeaten this season (3-0) in games tied at halftime and have yet to lose (4-0) in the month of September
•    Friday's game vs. Maryland will have a limited supply headband giveaway. Sunday's game vs. Ball State will promote "Greening Cream & Crimson", an initiative designed to improve sustainability across IU Athletics.
•    Up Next: Indiana hits the road for a two-game weekend in New Jersey. The Hoosiers face No. 24 Rutgers on Friday, September 22 at 3:00 p.m. before taking on Monmouth on Sunday, September 24 at noon. The game against Rutgers will air on BTN Plus, and Sunday's game versus Monmouth will stream on ESPN3.

Follow Indiana Field Hockey on Facebook, Instagram, & Twitter.

#GoIU

Hoosiers Begin Big Ten Play With No. 9 Maryland

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Ciara Girouard

Maddie Latino