Big Green Opens 2018 Season With a Pair of Games in Iowa

Friday, August 31

Iowa City, Iowa

4:00 PM

Dartmouth College

Iowa

Coaches Fowler and Gillern are both Iowa graduates.

Photo by: John and Matt Risley

Big Green Opens 2018 Season With a Pair of Games in Iowa

8/30/2018 10:00:00 AM | Field Hockey

Live Video - Friday (BTN Plus)Live Stats - Friday Live Stats - Saturday

Dartmouth plays Iowa on Friday and Ball State Saturday.

By: Pat Salvas

GAME 1	GAME 2
Dartmouth Big Green (0-0) at No. 20 Iowa Hawkeyes (1-1) Date: Friday, Aug. 31, 2018 – 3 p.m. CST Location: Iowa City, Iowa – Grant Field All-Time Series: 0-0-0 Last Time: First Meeting Television: BTN Plus	Dartmouth Big Green (0-0)* vs. Ball State Cardinals (0-2) Date: Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018 – 3:30 p.m. CST Location: Iowa City, Iowa – Grant Field All-Time Series: 0-0-0 Last Time: First Meeting

THIS WEEKEND
The Dartmouth field hockey team opens the 2018 season this weekend with a pair of games in the Hawkeye State.

LAST TIME OUT
The Big Green finished the 2017 campaign with a 7-10 overall record and were 2-5 in Ivy League play. The team went 3-2 in the final five games of the season, including an OT win at home against Columbia thanks to Taylor Hantman's first career goal 6:39 into the extra frame.

SCOUTING IOWA
•   The 20th-ranked Hawkeyes are 1-1 after opening the season at the B1G/ACC in North Carolina last weekend.
•   Iowa opened with a 2-1 win against No. 14 Wake Forest.
•   The team then dropped a 2-1 overtime game the next afternoon to second-ranked North Carolina.
•   Sophomore Maddy Murphy has two of the Hawkeyes' three goals, notching one in each game so far. Katie Birch has the other.

SCOUTING BALL STATE
•   The Cardinals are 0-2 heading into their weekend in Iowa. They will play Dartmouth on Saturday and then take on the hosts the following afternoon.
•   Ball State dropped its opener against Saint Francis (4-0) and Indiana (2-0).
•   No player has recorded a point this season as the Cardinals have been outscored, 6-0, in their first two games. Goalkeeper Grace Chavez has a 3.86 goals against average to go along with a .647 save percentage in the 140 minutes of action.

AGAINST THE HAWKEYES AND CARDINALS
This weekend marks the first time the Big Green have ever played either opponent.

TOP RETURNERS
•   Junior Katie Spanos is the team's top returner from a season ago. Spanos was a Second Team All-Ivy League selection a season ago after leading the team with nine goals, nine assists and 27 points.
•   Gemma Bautista was second in both goals (8) and points (19) and is also back this season for her senior year.
•   Senior goalkeeper Hailey Valerio assumed the starting role a season ago and posted six wins in 14 starts, while making 115 saves and boasting a .680 save percentage and 3.69 goals against average.

NEW FACES
Four members of the Class of 2022 are set to join the Big Green this fall as Cecelia Monnin (M/D), Gracyn Campbell (F), Sara Falkson (D) and Isabella Santucci (GK) represent new talent at positions all over the field.

CAPTAINS
This year's team co-captains are seniors Evie Bird and Jessica Valvano.

PRESEASON
The Big Green capped a two-game preseason slate on Sunday morning at home against Waterloo with a 5-1 win. The teams then competed in a two-round shootout with Dartmouth also claiming a 5-1 victory.

"HOME" SWEET HOME
Head coach Amy Fowler and associate head coach Pattie Gillern are both Iowa graduates.
•   Fowler played for the Hawkeyes from 1989-92 and was a two-time First Team All-American (1991, '92) and was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and a member of the NCAA All-Tournament Team as a senior in 1992. Iowa made three Final Four appearances during her playing career.
•   Gillern was a member of the team from 1999-03, earning All-Big Ten and was named an All-American as a senior. Gillern would lead the team in both goals and points as a junior and senior, respectively.

FOLLOW ALONG
Those looking to follow the action this weekend in Iowa can do so with live stats provided by HawkeyeSports.com. Fans can also track all the action on Twitter and Instagram by following the team's official accounts: @DartmouthFH. Friday's game against Iowa will also be carried live on the BTN Plus.

WHAT'S AHEAD?
The Big Green will open the home portion of its fall slate next weekend with a Friday (Sept. 7) afternoon contest against Vermont at 4 p.m. The game against the Catamounts — along with all home games and Ivy League road games in 2018 — will be carried live on ESPN+.