Nov. 2, 2006

The 2006 Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament kicks off Friday, November 3rd at 10:00 a.m., at the University of Michigan's Phyllis Ocker Field. The tournament features four of the country's top 15 teams. No. 1 seeded Ohio State claimed its first-ever outright Big Ten Championship in program history while closing out the season with a 5-1 mark in conference play. For the second-consecutive year, Indiana earns the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, and faces No. #7 Michigan State in a regular season rematch that saw the Spartans take a 1-0 victory over the Hoosiers in Friday's opening round. Two time defending tournament champion Michigan returns as this year's fourth seed after closing out the regular season with a 4-2 mark. The Wolverines were the No. 4 seed last year when they swept the field to claim their second straight Big Ten Tournament title. Three first round match-ups will determine the semifinal opponents for Saturday's games, which are slated for Saturday, November 4th with matches at 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. The championship game is set for Sunday, Nov. 5, at 1 p.m., and will be televised by College Sports Television on a tape-delay basis. CSTV will broadcast the championship game on Tuesday, Nov. 7 at 5:30 p.m. EST.

No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes
Record: 5-1 Big Ten Conference, 14-2 Overall
Head Coach: Anne Wilkinson
Opening Game: Saturday, vs. Michigan or Iowa, 11:00 a.m. ET

The Buckeyes, who earned the first-round bye, enter the Big Ten Tournament winning their last six matches and are ranked fifth in the latest STX/NFHCA National Coaches poll. Ohio State closed out the season with a near perfect 5-1 mark in conference play and 14-2 overall.

Fueled by a semi-final loss to the Hoosiers last year in the Big Ten Tournament the Buckeyes have their sights set this year on making it to championship Sunday. Ohio State started the season by rattling off eight straight wins before dropping a 2-1 battle to Indiana in Bloomington Ind., on September 30th. Their only other loss came to No. 2 Wake Forest six days later, however since then the Buckeyes hold a six game winning streak outscoring their opponents 19-8. Senior midfielder Saskia Mueller scored the game-winning double-overtime goal against Michigan State on Oct 28th to clinch the Big Ten regular-season title for Ohio State and earn her third player of the week honor of October. The goal in the 89th minute was her second overtime game-winner and third game-winning goal overall on the year.

Led by Lauren Kruse and Linda Haussener the Buckeyes have recorded a conference-high 3.09 scoring average and 20 goals. Kruse is the second leading goal scorer in the conference with five while Haussener follows her with four goals and four assists. Junior Yesenia Luces has four assists of her own to tie Haussener with both players leading the conference in assists. On the season the Buckeye offense has scored 63 goals, 17 more than any other conference team.

The top-seeded Buckeyes receive a bye for the first round of the tournament, and will face the winner of the first round battle between fourth-seeded Michigan and fifth-seeded Iowa in the first semifinal on Saturday, Nov. 4, at 11 a.m. In Big Ten Tournament action, OSU has tallied 13 wins and claimed its first-ever tourney title in 2001.

No. 2 Indiana Hoosiers
Record: 4-2 Big Ten Conference, 14-4 Overall
Head Coach: Amy Robertson
Opening Game: Friday, vs. No. 7 Michigan State, 10:00 a.m. ET

By earning the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament for their second-consecutive year, the Hoosiers have solidified themselves as a legitimate threat in the tournament closing out the regular season with a 4-2 mark. The Hoosiers, who are rated 12th in the country, have notched an overall record of 14-4 with all of their losses coming at the hands of top-ranked opponents - No. 5 Ohio State, No. 10 Virginia, No. 14 Louisville and No. 15 Michigan.

After last year's fairytale season the Hoosiers are determined to prove themselves once again hoping to finish what they started in last year's championship game against Michigan. Last year, Indiana advanced to its first-ever Big Ten Tournament title game, but eventually lost to the Wolverines, 3-0, in the finale. Despite taking the least number of shots than any other conference team (49), the Hoosiers converted ten goals to tie them for third in the Big Ten. While junior forward Kate O'Connell leads the Hoosiers in conference play with four goals and four assists, Lydia Schrott leads the team (and ranks second in the conference) with 12 goals with midfielder Meredith Brown contributing a team-high 11 assists on the season.

Indiana's defense is lead by junior goalkeeper Haley Exner who only allowed the second fewest goals in conference play (8) while going on to save 38 shots. The Hoosier's biggest defensive showing came against Penn State in the final regular season game. For the first time in the program's seven-year history and the first time in eight tries, Indiana defeated the Nittany Lions, 1-0, on Oct. 29 in University Park, Pa. IU is the first team to shut out Penn State in 38 contests.

Their quest begins on Friday at 10:00 a.m., when they face No. 7 seed Michigan State. The first quarterfinal should prove to be intense with the Hoosiers looking to avenge a 1-0 loss to the Spartans earlier in the season.

No. 3 Penn State Nittany Lions
Record: 4-2 Big Ten Conference, 13-4 Overall
Head Coach: Char Morett
Opening Game: Friday, vs. No. 6 Northwestern, 3:00 p.m. ET

Penn State is the No. 3 seed with a 13-4 overall mark and ranked sixth in the latest national poll. The Nittany Lions nearly clinched a share of the conference regular-season title; however, PSU fell to Indiana in the final conference game to tie for second place in the team standings with a 4-2 Big Ten mark.

Behind a stifling defense that has allowed the fewest goals on the season (17) the Lions are looking to claw their way back to into the championship game after the 2004 tournament champions dropped a 2-1 semi-final match to eventual champion Michigan last year.

Goalkeeper Jen Beaumont has proven to be a wall in front of the net posting seven overall shutouts and allowing only seven goals in conference action.  The Penn State attack is lead by sophomore midfielder Allison Scola who leads the conference in goals with six including three game-winners (five total) and forward Shaun Banta who leads the team with 13 goals on the season. The teams' three leading assist leaders are found on all three lines proving balance throughout with forward Jen Long, midfielder Scola and defender Mallory Weisen combining for 22 of Penn State's 37 assists. 

Penn State, who is tied with Michigan for the most all-time Big Ten Tournament Championships with four, will open play at the 2006 Big Ten Tournament on Friday at 3:00 p.m. in Ann Arbor, Mich. against the sixth seed, Northwestern.
No. 4 Michigan Wolverines

No. 4 Michigan Wolverines
Record: 4-2 Big Ten Conference, 11-8 Overall
Head Coach: Marcia Pankratz
Opening Game: Friday, vs. No. 5 Iowa, 12:30 p.m. ET

No. 4 seed Michigan, rated 15th nationally, will look to defend its Big Ten Tournament championship from last season and capture its fifth in school history. The Wolverines won back to-back tournament crowns in 1999 and 2000, and again in 2004 and 2005. This year teams will ascend to Ann Arbor, Mich., at Ocker Field to try to knock of the defending champs. However, the Wolverines own an impressive 57-10 record at home including a 7-1 mark this season, outscoring their opponents 29-11.

The No. 4 seed may be a blessing in disguise for Michigan. The Wolverines held the number four spot last year when they cruised to a 3-0 shutout of Indiana to claim their second consecutive Big Ten Tournament title. The Wolverine front line is led by junior Lucia Belass's who is having a break out year registering career highs in every scoring category with 10 goals, five assists and 25 points on the season. Michigan's 40 assists on the year make them second only to Ohio State. Senior Mary Fox contributed 11 assists in conference play placing her in a three way tie for second in the Big Ten. This year she climbed to the fifth spot among U-M's all-time assist leaders with 28 and only needs three more assists to reach the fourth position. With seven saves in the regular-season finale against Northwestern (Oct. 29), senior Beth Riley continued to inch her way up Michigan's career saves list, bringing her total to 350 stops during her U-M tenure. The Wolverine goalkeeper ranks sixth in the category in the program's 33-year history and needs just three more saves to reach the fifth position.

The Wolverines have advanced to the Big Ten Tournament championship game in seven of the last eight seasons and begins their quest for a third consecutive title in the second quarterfinal game on Friday, Nov. 3 when they clash with No. 5 Iowa at 12:30 p.m. The Wolverines trail 13- 32 in the all-time series against Iowa but have been dominant of late, winning 12 of the last 15 contests between the storied programs. Michigan is a perfect 3-0 against Iowa in Big Ten Tournament action -- the first two matches were closely-fought, one-goal championship games (1999, 2004) while in last season's meeting, U-M squeezed past the Hawkeyes 3-2 in the opening round.

No. 5 Iowa Hawkeyes
Record: 2-4 Big Ten Conference, 9-8 Overall
Head Coach: Tracey Griesbaum
Opening Game: Friday, vs. No. 4 Michigan, 12:30 p.m. ET

Iowa is the fifth seed after posting a 9-8 overall record and 2-4 conference mark. The Hawkeyes, who won the first Big Ten Tournament in 1994, boats a 12-11 (.523) tourney record and will look to return to the championship game for the first time since falling to Michigan in the 2004 finals.

As a freshman, Caitlin McCurdy provided a huge boost for the Hawkeyes and continues to do so for the Hawkeyes' in their 2006 campaign. The Mountain Top, Pa., native leads the team with nine goals and 20 points. Classmate, Lauren Pfeiffer is next closest with five goals. The two girls don't seem to by shy around the scoring circle combining for 121 total shots and setting up most of their shots is junior back Kadi Sickel who has contributed a team high 10 assists.

In the backfield the Hawkeyes return the 2005 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and first-team all-Big Ten selection in Heather Schnepf. As a senior, Schnepf has tied a career high in goals with four and has added a career high six assists. This past month she was selected by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association to participate in the Division I Senior All-Star game joining ten other Big Ten field hockey players.
 
Iowa will need to be strong on both sides of the ball in their first Big Ten Tournament game if the Hawkeyes are to advance past Michigan. The winner meets No. 1 seed Ohio State in the first semifinal game Saturday at 11:00 a.m.

No. 6 Northwestern
Record: 1-5 Big Ten Conference, 7-11 Overall
Head Coach: Kelly McCollum
Opening Game: Friday, vs. No. 3 Penn State, 3 p.m. ET

Northwestern heads into Ann Arbor, Mich., with a 1-5 conference mark, drawing the sixth seed in the Big Ten Tournament. The Wildcats scratched out a 3-2 overtime win over Michigan State on Sept. 30 in Evanston, Ill., in the second week of the conference season but could not build any more momentum. Don't question Northwestern's resiliency though, the Wildcats are 3-1 in extra minutes overcoming opponents Missouri State and Stanford and nearly posting an upset over No. 2 Indiana, however the Hoosiers came out on top to claim a 5-4 double-overtime victory over Northwestern.

Alex Quinn leads the team with six scores (two in conference) and four assists for a team-high 16 points. Despite the offensive drought the Wildcats' defense has done its part to keep the team within striking distance. Sophomore keeper, Emily Kyle has been busy this year recording slightly over seven saves a game (7.06) and her 113 saves leads the conference.

In the past two years, the Wildcats, fell in the first round, but not before taking eventual runners-up Iowa and Indiana to sudden-death overtime before both teams pulled out 2-1 wins. Northwestern meets No. 3 seed Penn State in the tournament's last game Friday at 3 p.m. Friday's contest is the second match up between the squads this season. Penn State won the regular season game in Evanston on Oct. 20, 3-1, thanks to a hat trick by Nittany Lion, Allison Scola. The Wildcats are looking for their first win against the Nittany Lions since 1997.

Michigan State rounds out the seven team field with a seventh-seed in the Big Ten tournament. After dropping their first four conference games, the Spartans rallied to defeat Indiana for their first win of the Big Ten season. Michigan State then nearly posted an upset over No. 5 Ohio State, however the Buckeyes came out on top to claim a 4-3 double-overtime victory over MSU in the final weekend of conference play.

The Spartans 1-5 record in conference and 7-11 overall record is not for a lack of effort on either side of the ball. Freshman Floor Rijpma took 64 shots on the season, the most in the conference; however, it was senior Ashley Pernicano that put the ball in the back of the net the most with a team-high 10 goals tying her for fourth against other Big Ten opponents.

MSU's defense totaled 110 saves on the season ranking them second behind Northwestern in the conference. Keeper Stephanie Yuhasz stopped 95 shots on goal to place her third in the Big Ten standings.

In the Spartans only conference win of the season and in the final home game of her career year Ashley Pernicano scored the only goal of the game to cap off her senior year with a 1-0 upset of No. 2 Indiana. Behind a great defensive effort senior goalkeeper Stephanie Yuhasz tallied her fourth shutout this season and second consecutive, posting four saves in the win.

The two squad's face-off again at 10 a.m. on Friday. The winner of the match will go on to face the victor in the third versus sixth-seed match between Penn State and Northwestern.

Big Ten Field Hockey

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