Second-Ranked Blue Devils Travel to Iowa This Weekend

Saturday, September 14

Iowa City, Iowa

3:00 PM

Duke University

California

Grace Kim

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Second-Ranked Blue Devils Travel to Iowa This Weekend

9/13/2019 11:44:00 AM | Field Hockey

Game Notes

Duke to Face California, No. 7 Iowa

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. – After going unbeaten at the B1G/ACC Cup for the fourth time in five years, Duke heads back out on the road, traveling to Iowa City, Iowa for a pair of non-conference contests. The Blue Devils face California first Saturday at 3 p.m. ET before taking on the seventh-ranked Hawkeyes Sunday at 2 p.m. ET.

This week's Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll saw head coach Pam Bustin's squad jump one spot to No. 2, marking the highest ranking for the program since November of 2017.

Redshirt senior goalkeeper Sammi Steele reeled in NFHCA Division I National and ACC Defensive Player of the Week accolades this week for her performance at the B1G/ACC Cup in Evanston, Ill.

No. 2 Duke vs. California
Saturday, 3 p.m. ET l Iowa City, Iowa – Grant Field
Live Stats
Duke owns a 19-2-1 ledger against America East Conference teams and has faced California more than any other AEC squad. The Blue Devils are unbeaten in the all-time series at 7-0, with the last meeting between the teams coming in the 2015 season opener. In that contest, forward Ashley Kristen notched the first hat trick of her career while guiding Duke to a 5-1 victory over the Bears in Stanford, Calif. Kristen also added two assists in the neutral site win for a career-best eight points, marking the most by a Blue Devil since Amie Survilla turned in an eight-point performance against New Hampshire Sept. 27, 2009.

Coming off of consecutive contests against ranked opponents, Cal (1-2) will face the seventh-ranked Hawkeyes Friday prior to Saturday's matchup with the Blue Devils. The Bears will be in search of their first victory over a ranked opponent since 2017. Cal goalkeeper Natalie Dalton enters Friday's contest with a 2.00 goals against average and a .760 save percentage. She ranks among the top 20 goalkeepers nationally with an average of 6.33 saves per game. Maddie Cleat's four points pace all Cal players through the first three contests.

No. 2 Duke at No. 7 Iowa
Sunday, 2 p.m. ET l Iowa City, Iowa – Grant Field
BTN+ ($) l Live Stats
While Iowa visited Durham last November for NCAA Tournament action, the Hawkeyes and Blue Devils will square off Sunday for the first time since 2017. In that Oct. 8 meeting, Duke earned a 4-2 victory over the Hawkeyes behind a two-goal showing by 2019 graduate Erin Scherrer, to move to 5-2 all-time against Iowa.

Iowa moved up one spot to No. 7 in this week's Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll following a 2-0 weekend at home to put the squad's ledger at 3-1. The Hawkeyes blanked Central Michigan, 11-0, before topping Columbia by a 3-1 score. Hawkeye senior Sophie Sunderland garnered Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week recognition Monday after turning in a hat trick against Central Michigan. Sunderland is tied for the team lead entering this weekend's action with nine points on four goals and one assist, and is also tied for first in the Big Ten in goals per game (1.00).

Katie Birch tops the Big Ten and is fourth nationally in assists per game (1.25), and is also second in the Big Ten in points per game (2.25). In goal, Leslie Speight has guided Iowa to the 3-1 start with a 1.59 goals against average.

Duke improved to 43-55-4 historically against Big Ten teams with a pair of wins at last weekend's B1G/ACC Cup. The Blue Devils have also logged over Big Ten member Penn State this season.

Noting Duke
Moving On Up
The Blue Devils climbed to No. 2 in this week's national rankings after going unbeaten against a pair of ranked foes at the B1G/ACC Cup. The ranking marked the highest for the program since November, 2017.

Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll – Sept. 10
1. North Carolina (4-0)
2. Duke (4-0)
3. Connecticut (4-0)
4. Maryland (3-1)
5. Princeton (1-1)
6. Virginia (4-0)
7. Iowa (3-1)

Steele Curtain
Redshirt senior goalkeeper Sammi Steele's performance over the weekend at the B1G/ACC Cup garnered her national and conference recognition this week. Steele was tabbed the ACC Defensive Player of the Week Tuesday and the NFHCA Division I National Co-Defensive Player of the Week Wednesday. The weekly conference honor was the sixth of Steele's career, while she took home NFHCA Division I National Player of the Week laurels for the third time.

Steele has figured largely into Duke's 4-0 start to the 2019 campaign, helping the squad lead the ACC and rank second in the country in goals against average (0.47) this week. She guided the Blue Devils to their second shutout of the young season Sunday in 1-0 victory over then-No. 2 Maryland and contributed to a strong defensive effort last Friday in a 2-1 defeat of No. 15 Northwestern.

The #SteeleCurtain proved to be invincible this past weekend ????

Sammi Steele has been named the ACC Defensive Player of the Week, and we're just as stoked as she is for her honor ??

Link: https://t.co/1vKwVJ5NQm #GoDuke ???? pic.twitter.com/ysg0XVL7Xc
— Duke Field Hockey (@DukeFH) September 10, 2019

B1G Wins in Evanston
The Blue Devils went unbeaten at the B1G/ACC for the fourth time in five seasons. Duke owns the best composite record of the four teams that take part in the annual tournament.

B1G/ACC Cup Composite Records
Boston College 3-7
Duke 9-1
Maryland 4-6
Northwestern 4-6

At the Top
Eleven unbeaten teams remain in Division I action, including the Blue Devils with a 4-0 record. The 4-0 ledger marks Duke's best start since 2016. Three other ACC teams - Louisville, North Carolina and Virginia - are also undefeated.

Devilish on Defense
Duke tops the ACC and ranks second in the country this week in goals against average (0.47). The Blue Devils are also tied for fourth nationally with two shutouts on the season.

Anchored by redshirt senior goalkeeper Sammi Steele, the defensive unit has surrendered just two goals in four outings. The squad also boasts two contests in which opponents did not garner a single penalty corner opportunity.

A Blue Devil has received a nod as the ACC Defensive Player of the Week on two consecutive occasions. Senior back Jillian Wolgemuth was awarded the conference's first defensive honor of the season and Steele reeled in conference and national accolades this week. Steele notched a season-best four saves in last Sunday's shutout of then-No. 2 Maryland, including a diving stop on a penalty stroke attempt by the Terrapins. Wolgemuth was also credited with a defensive save in the 1-0 win.

Balancing Act
The Blue Devils have featured a balanced offensive effort in the first four contests of the year, as seven different players have notched at least one point.

Sophomore forward Leah Crouse has a team-high three goals and seven points, followed by senior midfielder Haley Schleicher's five points.

Freshman forward Hannah Miller has gotten into the mix early with a pair of tallies while senior midfielder Margaux Paolino had a hand in both game-winning goals last weekend in Evanston. Paolino provided the assist on the game winner against Northwestern in double overtime and scored the lone goal in Sunday's shutout of the Terrapins.

Against Ranked Opponents
With two wins over top-15 opponents, the Blue Devils are 49-22 against ranked foes since 2015. The squad went 13-6 against ranked opponents last fall. Under the direction of head coach Pam Bustin, Duke is 74-50 when facing ranked teams.

In Overtime
Duke improved to 48-48-7 all-time in overtime contests with a 2-1 double overtime victory against Northwestern last Friday. The Blue Devils are also 3-0 in overtime contests played at the B1G/ACC Cup. The 2018 Duke squad went 2-1 in overtime contests.

#GoDuke