Field Hockey Unable To Upset No. 12 Iowa In 3-1 Loss
10/20/2012 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Iowa City, Iowa -- Kent State (7-12; 3-1 MAC) was unable to deliver an upset today in their non-conference finale, falling to No. 12 Iowa (11-4; 3-1 Big Ten) in a 3-1 final. The game was the Golden Flashes seventh against a ranked opponent this year and left the team with a 4-11 non-conference record on the season.
The game got off to a slow start as neither side was able to gain much ground in the first ten minutes of play. However, Kent State's sophomore Hannah Faulkner (Edwardsville, Il.) continued her hot streak from the day before, when she took a deflected ball off of a penalty corner and put it into the goal to give the Golden Flashes the early lead, 1-0, in the 11th minute. It was her sixth goal of the season.
From there the defense settled in, not allowing the Hawkeyes to capitalize on any chances they had. This defensive stand lasted into the 33rd minute of the game, when Iowa's Natalie Cafone was able to score on a ball delivered five feet from the goal. The match was once again even, 1-1, as the horn sounded for halftime.
Iowa came out swinging in the second half, shooting seven times in the first seven minutes of the half. The Golden Flashes defense responded well, as they blocked or saved every ball that came their way. Not discouraged by their lack of success in breaking the tie, the Hawkeyes never relented, eventually finding a way to slip another past sophomore Jahna Jordan (Fallbrook, Calif.) to gain the advantage 2-1. Kent State's offensive attack was never able to recover after that, failing to record a shot the rest of the way.
Despite their best efforts, the Golden Flashes defense surrendered one more goal to Iowa, a cross delivered into the circle that was then put in the back of the net by Iowa's Kelsey Mitchell, her second goal of the day. The score went to 3-1 and the match finished that way, with Kent State unable to replicate their competitive first half performance.
Kent State is set to play at Central Michigan on Saturday, October 27 at 1:00 p.m. The match will be the last game of the regular season for the Golden Flashes and the outcome will directly effect seeding for the MAC Tournament.
