Last Defense

Much has changed in the last three years of IU field hockey. Games have moved from Mellencamp Pavilion to the new IU Field Hockey Field, players have come and gone and lineups \nhave been altered. \nBut if one thing has remained constant, it has been the presence of senior goalkeeper Haley Exner in net.\nExner, who has started all but one game over the last three years and earned All-Big Ten honors the past two seasons, will make her final home start Sunday when IU (7-9, 0-5) plays Northwestern on Senior Day. \nDuring her career, Exner played a crucial role in the growth of Hoosier field hockey, and her skill and leadership in goal have made her the face of a young program now established as a national power. \nExner grew up in San Diego, Cal., where field hockey was just becoming popular. Originally a basketball and softball player, Exner backed into a field hockey career her freshman year at Scripps Ranch High School. She had friends who played and thought she would give it a shot. After playing as a defender for the first two weeks, Exner’s coach tried her in goal. A week later, Exner was the starting goalie. \n“I’ve been a goalie ever since,” Exner said. “I’ve grown to like it, and I think it has become a part \nof me.”\nExner made a smooth transition to goalie and was one of the best goalkeepers in the country by the end of her high school career. \nWhile Exner was setting records in goal for Scripps Ranch, IU was experiencing the growing pains of a new program. After former IU Director of Athletics Clarence Doninger reinstated field hockey as a varsity sport in 2000, the Hoosiers had only one win in each of their first two seasons. The program showed signs of improvement, however, in 2003 when the Hoosiers went 8-10. \nWhen Exner chose to play at IU, she said her decision had little to do with the history of the program. IU was a team that needed a goalie, and the coaches, players and school were all the right fit. \n Exner waited her turn to start as she backed up \nKatie Kanara her freshman season. She saw action in only two games, and the Hoosiers recorded their first winning season with a 12-8 record. \nAs a sophomore, Exner was thrown into the mix as the starting goalie on a veteran team.\n“It was intimidating to start in a leadership position as a sophomore,” Exner said. “But the players listened to me and respected me, and I learned \na lot.”\nDuring that year, Exner’s play in goal took IU to new heights, earning the team a 17-5 record and its first ever trip to the NCAA tournament. \nIU coach Amy Robertson remembers games that year where Exner simply took over. \n“Against Ohio State two years ago, they just couldn’t score against her,” Robertson said. “She was making saves that no goalkeeper should’ve made. Against North Carolina in the NCAA tournament she made save after save against current members of our national team. A lot of the most memorable moments in IU field hockey have come because of Haley’s play in net.” \nExner’s career statistics speak for themselves: a 37-19 record, 315 saves and \neight shutouts. \nPerhaps what is most striking about Exner, though, is her intense passion on the field mixed with her gentle kindness off it.\n“Haley is a fierce competitor, but she is also the nicest person you’ll meet,” Robertson said. “She’s caring and thoughtful, but she’ll do whatever it takes to win.”\nIt is this contrast that has made Exner a natural leader among her teammates. Playing a position that demands leadership, Exner embodies every characteristic a goalie should possess, including the ability to direct a defense, her \nteammates said.\n“She is a fantastic communicator, and I’ve never seen someone organize a defense like she does,” backup goalkeeper Jobi Manson said. “It’s just instinctual for her.” \nThis season represents a new challenge for Exner because the young Hoosier squad has struggled at times. In a season characterized by near misses and heartbreaking defeats, Exner is the first to admit that it has \nbeen tough.\nIU carries an 0-5 Big Ten record into its game against Northwestern, but has yet to lose by more than two goals. Two of the losses have been overtime defeats to top-five opponents Michigan and Iowa. \n“It’s frustrating,” she said. “It has been challenging for me as a goalie and a leader. There has been a lot of adversity, but it is my job to make sure we \nstay positive.”\nAs a veteran leader, Exner knows that the most important part of the season is still ahead. A run in the Big Ten tournament can erase the sour taste of the close defeats. \nAnd if the Hoosiers are to make noise in the postseason, it will all start between the posts.