Iowa Soccer Wins 2023 Big Ten Tournament

[erut17]

In the spring of 2021, Iowa soccer slipped into the Big Ten Tournament on a technicality and turned it into a magical run as the Hawkeyes upset the likes of Penn State and Wisconsin to claim the Big Ten Tournament title. On Sunday, Iowa repeated history, once again besting the Badgers 1-0 to win the Big Ten Tournament and capping off another Cinderella run.

The Hawkeyes took the lead on a Josie Durr penalty and then hunkered down and held off a relentless Wisconsin attack over the final 70 minutes. The championship gives Iowa its second Big Ten Tournament title in school history, the record for the highest seed to win the Big Ten Tournament, and an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, whose bracket will be revealed tomorrow afternoon.
It's an extraordinary accomplishment for a team that has thrived when the pressure is highest and is now one of the hottest teams in the country heading into the single-elimination NCAA tournament.

You can find a full recap and analysis of a historic day in Hawkeye soccer here.

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

Posted this in the “off topic” thread:
Usually a pretty good sign when your goalkeeper is named the best goalkeeper, you have a forward make the all-tournament team, and a defender named B1G Most Outstanding Defender of the Tournament. Enneking and Cary go out as two all-time greats, with two conference tournament titles, multiple B1G and national awards, and now each having won a "Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament" award...

2023 Big Ten Women’s Soccer All-Tournament Team
Piper Coffield, Indiana
Samantha Cary, Iowa
Macy Enneking, Iowa
Kelli McGroarty, Iowa
Raegan Cox, Michigan State
Sarah Weber, Nebraska
Peyton McNamara, Ohio State
Kate Wiesner, Penn State
Riley Tiernan, Rutgers
Emma Jaskaniec, Wisconsin
Aryssa Mahrt, Wisconsin

Individual Awards
Offensive Player of the Tournament: Emma Jaskaniec, Wisconsin
Defensive Player of the Tournament: Samantha Cary, Iowa

 

[UpstreamHawkeye]

Iowa is the 5 seed in the Clemson bracket, hosting Bucknell in the first round. The potential second round opponent is Georgia.

 

[UpstreamHawkeye]

Nine Big Ten teams made the NCAA tournament, the 8 teams that played in the BTT plus Michigan. 4 of them were stuffed into the bracket that Iowa plays in, Penn State, Indiana, Rutgers and Iowa.

2023 Division I Women's Soccer Official Bracket | NCAA.com

The official 2023 College Women's Soccer Bracket for Division I. Includes a printable bracket and links to buy NCAA championship tickets.

www.ncaa.com

 

[pickr374]

Saw Iowa starts 4 freshmen, is that typical?....are the Hawks considered a young team up a coming team...how does the recruiting look like for next year? I know there is one girl around where we live (Twin Cities) and she's going to Iowa...she is a beast of a soccer player, one of the better ones I've seen in quite some time.

 

[erut17]

I don't think it's uncommon to have freshmen starting, although four is a sizable chunk. The real unique achievement of this group has been slotting in two freshmen at Center Back, traditionally the anchor of the defense. Both have played really really well this year and being flanked by Cary on one side and having Enneking behind them has proved a great support system.

Good questions on the recruiting front. Let me try to do some digging and follow up there.

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

Saw Iowa starts 4 freshmen, is that typical?....are the Hawks considered a young team up a coming team...how does the recruiting look like for next year? I know there is one girl around where we live (Twin Cities) and she's going to Iowa...she is a beast of a soccer player, one of the better ones I've seen in quite some time.

Very uncommon for other programs to have that many starting, especially BOTH center-backs. But Dillani has a definite no fear approach to playing talented freshmen. I don't know if this is intentional, but it appears Coach Dillani's method seems to be to load up on a loaded class every three or four years and have those very talented true freshman playing with the elite seasoned veterans. This Senior class was a top 25 recruiting class, and I believe this Freshman class may have been as well. That was the formula when we won the Big Ten Tournament and nearly upset UCLA in the NCAA second round in 2020 (technically Spring 2021), and it was the formula this year. Enneking, Cary, and Durr all began and ended their careers at Iowa with Big Ten Tournament Titles, so it seems to be working out okay.

Another note, Dave has tended to pick up very talented goal scoring grad transfers in the portal to add to our scoring punch. Courtney Powell, All-B1G Alyssa Walker (played Portland Thorns in NWSL this past season), and now All-B1G Tournament Teamer Kelli McGroarty. Assist leader Elle Otto transferred up from Mississippi State after her Freshman year there and has been a great addition.

 

[UpstreamHawkeye]

Saw Iowa starts 4 freshmen, is that typical?....are the Hawks considered a young team up a coming team...how does the recruiting look like for next year? I know there is one girl around where we live (Twin Cities) and she's going to Iowa...she is a beast of a soccer player, one of the better ones I've seen in quite some time.

Tell me that girl is Maddyn Greenway.

 

[pickr374]

Ha! She's only a sophomore (has scored 100+ career goals in high school already), the soon to Iowa player in the 2024 class is Berit Parten. She's one of the better all-around soccer players I have seen in a long, long time. Her club team (Blast Soccer) won the 19U Girls Youth Soccer National Championships. She is goal scorer and passer, super tough player all around. My daughters club soccer team had been running into Parten's team a lot over the years...she's almost impossible to stop.

Very fun to watch.

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

Ha! She's only a sophomore (has scored 100+ career goals in high school already), the soon to Iowa player in the 2024 class is Berit Parten. She's one of the better all-around soccer players I have seen in a long, long time. Her club team (Blast Soccer) won the 19U Girls Youth Soccer National Championships. She is goal scorer and passer, super tough player all around. My daughters club soccer team had been running into Parten's team a lot over the years...she's almost impossible to stop.

Very fun to watch.

I see she was both Ms. Soccer Minnesota and Twin-Cities Metro Player of the Year. She's one of the first two signings Iowa named today, and both are both rated five star attackers. We might have some more offensive punch next year.

 

[pickr374]

Hope so! I knew she was Metro Player of the year...didn't realize she was name Ms. Soccer, it's certainly well-deserved/earned.

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

Another soccer commit from Pella is Abby Warner, cousin of George Kittle, Henry Krieger-Coble, and Jess Settles.

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

HUGE for Iowa Soccer, Macy Enneking returns on a medical redshirt for missing much of 2022...

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

Hope so! I knew she was Metro Player of the year...didn't realize she was name Ms. Soccer, it's certainly well-deserved/earned.

Someone on the off topic board was asking me about our recruiting class, so I dug further and used a free article to look at Top Drawer Soccer's rankings. She's a 4 star, but holy smokes, she was the golden boot winner at nationals and led her club ot the national U19 title with both goals in the final? That's pretty epic.

Also, @erut17, McGroarty is back as well! Had no idea she had another year of eligibility left.

 

[erut17]

Someone on the off topic board was asking me about our recruiting class, so I dug further and used a free article to look at Top Drawer Soccer's rankings. She's a 4 star, but holy smokes, she was the golden boot winner at nationals and led her club ot the national U19 title with both goals in the final? That's pretty epic.

Also, @erut17, McGroarty is back as well! Had no idea she had another year of eligibility left.

I didn't realize either of them had eligibility left, that's huge news for the Hawks. Super excited to see the Hawkeyes build on the late season run.

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

Coach’s Scholar All-American Sam Cary will be at the NWSL Draft tomorrow night on the ION network (on most antenna and cable systems). Listed as the top “Sleeper Pick” by Top Drawer Soccer. Likely our second ever NWSL player, and potentially our first to be drafted:

 

[Menace Sockeyes]

A few Spring updates (with video):

1) Iowa will play in the Spring Cup for Spring season, which is an invitational involving the elite Midwestern schools. Michigan State won it last year before going on to with the B1G Regular Season Championship. They are in it along with Notre Dame, Northwestern, Mizzou, Louisville, Xavier, SLU, etc. Hawks' group means they have a March 23rd home match in March vs A-10 powerhouse St. Louis, before a road match with Mizzou.


2) Sam Cary was drafted by Racing Louisville of the NWSL, becoming the second Hawkeye in two years to join the league, and the first to be drafted (ION broadcast noted we're officially the 100th school to have a draft pick).



3) Gianna Gourley was signed as an undrafted free agent by Seattle Reign. Looking to start a streak of two years where a new former Hawkeye forward plays in the NWSL. Played first two seasons at Iowa, including an All-B1G Freshman selection and a B1G Tournament title her Sophomore year. Ingles and future NWSL forward Alyssa Walker were going to limit her playing time though, so she transferred to Grand Canyon her final two years:


4) Got a fantastic grad transfer in South Dakota State's all-time goals and points leader, Maya Hansen. Don't know if she'll be on the Spring roster or not. Her highlights show a devastating cutting ability, and across the body finishes on the run: