No. 14 Hoosiers upset No. 7 Nittany Lions in field hockey\nThe No. 14 IU field hockey team struck fast and struck early.\nSenior midfielder Rachel Telian scored on a straight shot off a penalty corner in the fifth minute as the Hoosiers defeated the No. 7 Penn State Nittany Lions for the first time in program history Sunday. \n"This is huge," IU coach Amy Robertson said of her team's 1-0 victory. "Penn State is one of the top programs in the country, and they have a great team."\nRobertson said the victory gives the Hoosiers (14-4, 4-2 Big Ten) momentum going into the Big Ten Tournament next weekend in Ann Arbor, Mich. \n"This is the biggest win of the season," she said. "Maybe the biggest in the history of the program."\nThe victory comes in the wake of a two-game losing streak for the Hoosiers. But IU was able to recover with a victory in its regular season finale. \nEarlier in the season, the Hoosiers occasionally struggled offensively at the beginning of games, but that wasn't the case Sunday when Telian scored in the fifth minute.\n"The whole week in practice, Rachel was hitting the cover off the ball," Robertson said. "When we get a corner and she gets a shot like that, it's unstoppable. If we had been able to get more corners, we probably would have scored a couple more goals." \nTelian's goal came off assists from juniors Kate O'Connell and Meredith Brown. After the early goal, the IU defense was able to shut out the Nittany Lions the rest of the way.\n"We disrupted their flow," Robertson said. "They never really got good chances. Even when we made a mistake, we recovered with so much poise and confidence." \nRobertson described her goalie Haley Exner's play as "phenomenal" in the shutout victory.\n"To shut them out is the best feeling in the world," Exner said.\nExner had four saves in the game, and IU won despite being outshot 13-5 and drawing only five penalty corners to Penn State's eight. \n"Today we played beyond and above IU field hockey," Exner said. "We worked as a team, we scored and then our defense held it down time after time."
IU women drop 2-1 match to Purdue in soccer\nWEST LAFAYETTE -- Down 2-0 against archrival Purdue with less than 20 minutes left to play, the IU women's soccer team fought hard to come back. But in addition to challenging the Boilermaker defense, the Hoosiers had to battle Mother Nature as well. \nThe weather conditions in the box score for IU's 2-1 loss to the Boilermakers at the Varsity Soccer Complex in West Lafayette read, "Rain, cool, 43 degrees." What the box score didn't show were the puddles on the field that caused the ball to come to a complete stop and players from both sides to fall throughout the game.\n"It was a dreadful day," IU coach Mick Lyon said. "Ideally, you wouldn't want to play a soccer game right there -- playing it in half of a swimming pool." \nFreshman midfielder Christie Kotynski was able to cut the lead to 2-1 in the 72nd minute following Purdue goals by Jessica Okoroafo in the sixth and 46th minutes. Kotynski scored her fourth goal of the season following a rebound off a Boilermaker defender after a shot by senior midfielder Carrie DeFreece. DeFreece was awarded with an assist, her third of the season. \nIU was unable to get the equalizing goal as the ball kept getting stuck in mud puddles whenever IU tried to move it.\n"Tremendous credit to the girls because I think this is an extremely hostile environment," Lyon said. "And I thought we absolutely outperformed them. If we matched up to play them again in the Big Ten (tournament), I'd be more than happy to play them because I think on a better day with a better field we'll beat them."\nWhile Lyon praised the effort of his team, he was a little harsher about the Boilermaker hospitality.\n"It's a pity. .... At halftime we got to stand out in the rain and they're in a nice warm shelter," Lyon said. "They put fans behind the goal to hurl abuse at you."\nWhen the Hoosiers play again, they will be without junior defender Jenna Babcock. Babcock was given a red card in the 74th minute of the Purdue game for kicking a Boilermaker player while she was on the ground. Babcock will have to sit out one game as a result of the penalty which Lyon called "a mistake that she's going to pay the price for."\n"Even though you're frustrated, you can't lash out," Lyon said.
IU's losing streak hits 11 in volleyball with weekend loss to Iowa Hawkeyes\nThe IU women's volleyball team extended its losing streak to 11 games with a loss to Iowa Saturday night.\nThe Hoosiers dropped three straight games to the Hawkeyes (23-30, 25-30, 20-30). IU is now 10-14 on the season and 1-11 in the Big Ten. \nIowa snapped a six-game losing streak and recorded eight team blocks to help the cause. Saturday's win was Iowa's second Big Ten victory of the season. Its first was Oct. 6 against IU in Iowa City, Iowa.\n"Iowa definitely came to play," IU coach Katie Weismiller said. "Their setter did a really nice job of setting and keeping the tempo of the offense. Our offense was slow and our passing was not where it needs to be."\nThe Hoosiers were led by sophomore outside hitter Erica Short's 13 kills and sophomore defensive specialist Juli Pierce's 20 digs. Sophomore setter Kiley Fister's 44 set assists helped lead Iowa.\nThe Hoosiers look to break their losing streak when they travel to No. 24 Ohio State on Friday and No. 2 Penn State on Saturday at 7 p.m. \n \n\nA win, a top-five finish and great individual performances are just a few of the things that can describe the fall season thus far for the IU women's golf team. \nNow, after four tournaments and the emergence of three freshmen, IU will wrap up its fall season today and Tuesday in the Edwin Watts/Palmetto Intercollegiate in Kiawah Island, S.C. It will be the largest tournament field IU has competed in this fall, with 20 teams participating, including in-state rival Notre Dame and Big Ten rivals Minnesota and Wisconsin.\n"We want to play hard so we can end the fall season on a positive note," IU coach Clint Wallman said.\nWallman also said that despite the rainy conditions in practice last week, he is not worried about the difference in playing conditions.\n"We prepare for the tournament and the course, and by virtue of practicing in the rain, we are prepared for any weather," he said.\nIU freshman Kellye Belcher, whose fall season was highlighted by a second-place finish in Michigan, said she is feeling upbeat about the team's chances this weekend. "I have a very good feeling about this tournament and think we will dominate it," Belcher said. \nIU junior Elaine Harris concurred with Belcher on IU's prospects.\n"I have a positive outlook (on this tournament) because there are teams in this field we have played and beaten before," Harris said.\nWallman also said even if IU doesn't perform as well as it expects in the tournament, he is very proud of what the Hoosiers have accomplished this fall season.\n"Between winning in Wisconsin and having four of our girls in the top 15 in four different tournaments, I am very excited about our future and present," he said.
