7 September 2025

There are two basic strategies for a hockey team facing a much stronger opponent, passive or active. Pull the players back towards their own goal, get as many defenders into their own scoring circle as possible, and wait for the attackers to make a mistake. A missed trap on a penalty corner can lead to a quick counterattack or a foul with a penalty card gains an extra player. The active strategy is the opposite; maintain a high press and attack aggressively. The passive approach used to be favored by Asian international teams before the Chinese started to spend a lot of money learning how to play like Australians, only better. The active approach works especially well if your players are faster and fitter even if t less skillful with the stick. A decade or so ago it was a favorite of the US National Team before the Europeans too discovered American physical conditioning techniques.

Yet, I could not help wondering why on earth would Iowa schedule a mismatch like today’s? The Queens Royals used to play in Division II but in the last three seasons transitioned to the bottom of Division I, losing even to Saint Louis and my alma mater Georgetown. They are an orphan, playing as an independent without belonging to a conference. Now Iowa would be their first time facing a Big Ten opponent. The Massey RPI predicted that Iowa would win 7-0, displaying a 100% level of confidence in the outcome.

As it turned out, Massey’s formula was almost right, though with one difference that I am sure mattered to the Royals. The Hawks scored first in the third minute with a field goal by our Netherlands freshman Fréderique van Cleef. Two minutes later Tess Reed scored and less than a minute later the Hawkeye fans were standing up cheering as van Aalsum bagged another field goal. It looked like a rout but the Royal defenders settled down. Their goalkeeper Madison Destefano saved a shot on goal by van Cleef. In the eighth minunte Iowa gained their first penalty corner but the shot was blocked.

In the second quarter, Iowa’s Zonnenberg scored a field goal two minutes in. But for the remainder of the half the Hawks remained scoreless despite numerous chances, attempts by van Cleef, substitute Rylie Novak (newly returned for competing for the Canadian U21 team in Asuncion), an Iowa penalty corner shot by Milly Short, saved by the Royals’ goalie, and a field goal attempt by Lexie Haig that was saved as well. So, play adjourned for the half with the Hawks leading four goals to nil and cruising towards their expected victory.

After the half, the Iowa resumed their attack, with van Aalsum scoring on a penalty corner in the second minute. But in the ninth minute for the briefest moment the match shifted towards the Royals as their midfielder Maddie Just took and assist from teammate Hensley Miller and scored. The Queens bench erupted with joyful screams. I don’t think there were any Royals supporters in the bleachers, but I felt a quiet moment of satisfaction for them. Surely even when she is my age, Maddie Just will remember that goal with satisfaction, scoring against a top twenty team. Iowa resumed their inevitable progress, with van Aalsum scoring her tenth goal of the season on a penalty corner. Then Iowa won another corner and sent the injection to Milly Short and this time she scored. Two minutes into the final quarter, Iowa penetrated the Royals’ circle again. Zonnenberg injected to stopper Gia Whalen, and van Aalsum gave Iowa their final goal. The Queens defenders had not finished their work, however. The Hawks would get nine more shots before the final hooter sounded. The Royals defenders surely deserved kudos that Queens avoided the humiliation of a worse rout, given that Iowa’s offense enjoyed so many opportunities. (They weren’t the only ones mismatched against a Big Ten team; Michigan savaged Bellarmine 13-0.)

I left Grant Field quite tired, having awakened at midnight to watch the final Oceana Cup match from Darwin, Australia, and most pleased by the New Zealand Black Sticks win over the Australian Hockeyroos. What now could we expect for Iowa? It boded well for their prospects that the Hawks had not relied entirely on van Aalsum for goals. It was gratifying that our Captain Milly Short scored a penalty corner as well. And van Cleef and Tess Reed had field goals. In terms of what gamblers call “the spread” there is no difference between the final score of 8-1 and the predicted 7-0, but for the Royals it was surely a world of difference to avoid a shutout. As for the Hawkeyes, this coming weekend they will travel to Louisville and face first Miami of Ohio, a vastly stronger Mid-America team than Kent State; the Red Hawks rank twentieth in the National Field Hockey Coaches poll. Next Iowa play Louisville, not rated by the NFHCA but nineteenth on the Massey RPI. Should Iowa win both, we should be sanguine for our season.