IU to face Tar Heels in 1st round of NCAA tournament

For the IU field hockey team, the road to the Final Four begins in Winston-Salem, N.C., the site of its first-round matchup with No. 5 University of North Carolina. The Hoosiers and the Tar Heels square off at 11 a.m. Saturday. \nAs IU prepares for the first NCAA tournament game in school history, coach Amy Robertson said she doesn't feel any sense of complacency from her team, despite the fact it has already secured the most successful season in six years of Hoosier field hockey. \n"There isn't a sense that just getting to the tournament for the first time is enough," Robertson said. "If we weren't such a talented team, that could have satisfied us, but we believe we have a legitimate chance of reaching the Final Four."\nShould the Hoosiers advance to the second round, they will face the winner of host school and three-time defending national champion No. 2 Wake Forest and No. 20 University of California, Berkeley. A second-round victory would propel the Hoosiers to Louisville, the site of the 2005 Final Four. \nWith Atlantic Coast Conference champion Maryland representing the NCAA tournament field as the overall No. 1 seed, the conference has proven to be the toughest in field hockey this season. With Wake and UNC, two of the elite ACC teams, residing in the Hoosiers' bracket, sophomore All-Big Ten goalkeeper Haley Exner said she knows escaping Winston-Salem will be a challenge. \n"UNC and Wake are two of the most competitive teams in the ACC, and we're definitely going in as underdogs," Exner said. "We like that mentality, and we're going to go in there confident, knowing that we're capable of accomplishing anything."\nWhile the Hoosiers didn't face UNC in the regular season, they did square off against Wake Forest in Winston-Salem. The team battled back Sept. 4 from a 3-0 deficit to lose 4-2. \nWith the short amount of time between the official NCAA selection announcements for the field and the start of actual play, Robertson said preparing for the tournament is more about focusing on your team rather than opponents.\n"We're studying UNC's tendencies and identifying their key players, but we're also focusing on our game as well," Robertson said. "We need to make sure we're loose, refreshed and rested and mentally prepared for the tournament."\nAlthough IU is playing in the tournament for the first time, senior midfielder Lesley Wiler said nerves shouldn't be a big factor, although she admits they will be present. \n"Because this is our first bid, we are a little nervous," Wiler said. "Although we are playing for something more significant, it's just another game. When it comes down to it, the circle is still 16 yards, the field is the same length and we're still 11 players working together on the field"