Northwestern University Athletics
Big Ten Tournament Field Hockey Preview
10/30/2001 12:00:00β―AM | Field Hockey
Oct. 30, 2001
EVANSTON, Ill.- With the regular season complete, college field hockey teams around the country are gearing up for postseason play, including all seven Big Ten teams. They will converge on Northwestern's Lakeside Field this weekend for the 2001 Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament.
Michigan State and Ohio State are the regular-season champions, completing their respective Big Ten tours with identical 5-1 records. However, the Spartans will be the No. 1 seed in the tournament by virtue of their 2-1 win over Ohio State on Oct. 20 in Columbus. Both MSU and OSU are claiming their first title.
Ranked sixth in the latest STX/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll, Michigan State enters the tournament with a 15-4 record. Its only conference loss came in overtime to Michigan. The ninth-ranked Buckeyes are 12-4 and clinched a share of the Big Ten title with a 3-0 win over Indiana. As the top seed, the Spartans receive a first-round bye, while the Buckeyes square off against seventh-seeded Indiana in Game 1 at 10 a.m. CST on Friday, Nov. 2.
In Game 2 of the tourney, fourth-seeded Iowa-ranked 16th in the country-faces off against 13th-ranked Penn State. Both teams finished with 3-3 conference records, but Iowa will be the higher seed thanks to a 2-1 win over the Nittany Lions on Oct. 5.
The final contest of the first day pits the No. 6 seed and tournament host Northwestern against 13-4 Michigan, the third seed. The Wolverines, ranked fifth in the country, defeated NU Saturday in both team's regular-season finale, 2-0. The Wolverines have a 4-2 conference record.
The second day of competition, Saturday, Nov. 3, will see Michigan State battle the winner of the Iowa-Penn State game. Game time is set for 11:30 a.m. The second game of the day will pit the winners of Ohio State-Indiana and Michigan-Northwestern and is set for 2 p.m.
The Big Ten Tournament championship takes place at 1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 4. The winner receives an automatic bid into the 16-team NCAA Championship.
To order tickets, call the NU ticket office at 847/491-CATS (2287). Ticket prices are $5 for adults and $3 for students (with ID) and children.
2001 Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament Schedule:
Friday, November 2
Game 1-#2 Ohio State 5, #7 Indiana 0 Game Recap Box Score
Game 2-#4 Iowa 3, #5 Penn State 2 (OT)Game Recap Box Score
Game 3-#3 Michigan 6, #6 Northwestern 1 Game Recap Box Score
Saturday, November 3
Semifinal 1-#4 Iowa 3, #1 Michigan State 2 (2OT) Game Recap Box Score
Semifinal 2-#5 Ohio State 3, #3 Michigan 0 Game Recap Box Score
Sunday, November 4
Championship Game-#2 Ohio State 2, #4 Iowa 1 Game Recap Box Score
