Hoosiers ousted in Big Ten Tournament

The comeback came up short.

The IU field hockey team’s season came to an end Thursday as it fell to Iowa 3-2 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.

“We dominated the game,” IU Coach Amy Robertson said. “We had a lot of brilliant play in places, but when we had our letdowns, Iowa capitalized. They had a little more luck on their side today.”

The Hawkeyes came out swinging, netting two goals in the first 10 minutes. Freshman forward and midfielder Audra Heilman gave the Hoosiers life with a goal from the middle in the sixteenth minute. Iowa added a third goal in the 40th minute, a goal that would eventually win the game. Although IU answered on a strike by junior forward Morgan Fleetwood, it wasn’t enough and the Hoosiers’ season came to an end.

“I’m really sad and devastated that it is over because I want to be with this team a few more weeks,” Robertson said. “Our seniors won’t ever have this chance again, but they gave it everything they had, and it was a fun ride.”

The Hoosiers finished the year with a 9-8 record. They were very vulnerable away from home, going 3-7 in matches away from Bloomington. Still, Robertson is happy with the team’s season performance and looks to get back on track next year.

“We like to focus on the positives,” she said. “We had some really big victories against Duke and Northwestern. We had some times today that I was really proud of our team. I thought we were going to get back on the board and get the win, but I really saw some things to smile about in our future.”