“Today, although we’ve been in our season for quite some time, this was a new season because you start Big Ten play,” head coach Rolf van de Kerkhof said. “I think you could see that we were excited but also anxious about it. … Whether 1-0 or 4-0 — a win is a win, especially in the Big Ten.”

Steinmetz posted her fifth goal of the season, while van Ierland made her seventh assist.

Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Molly Cassidy anchored the Spartans’ defense and earned her fourth shutout of the season. She made three saves in the game.

Cassidy attributed her shutout performance to her team’s ability to defend the entire field and slow down Iowa’s playing.

“I think our defense really started with our forwards,” Cassidy said. “If they don’t do their job, then it goes on to our midfielders and so on. We all played great defense as a team today, so that was definitely helpful for our back line.”

MSU was able to hold the Hawkeyes to only three shots the entire game — two in the first and one in the second half — while it recorded total 11 shots. The team also led Iowa in penalty corners 4-2.

In the first half, despite having five shots, two of which were on goal, MSU was unable to push the score any higher. The team also only had one penalty corner scoring opportunity in the half.

The Spartans said that while all of their games are competitive, the Big Ten is generally more physical, and Iowa was no exception.

“I think we got caught off guard by how physical it was,” Cassidy said. “The Big Ten is very physical, but we played strong throughout the whole game. … I feel like you could ask anyone on our team, and they would tell you they felt a few bumps. I think that kind of shocked us at first.”

In addition to her goal, Steinmetz and senior midfielder Sabine van den Assem lead the Spartans’ attack with four shots each, and senior midfielder Julie Mackay and Amanda Huck and senior forward Camille Dagorn all added one.

MSU has been focusing on increasing its pressure in their opponent’s circle, and Steinmetz acknowledged that the team is improving, but the low-scoring game demonstrates that it’s not quite there yet. This is the fourth time this season that the Spartans have won 1-0.

“We’re going to still work on that this week and capitalizing on our opportunities, but overall, I think we played great,” Steinmetz said.

MSU looks to extend its Big Ten winning streak next Friday when the team travels to Ann Arbor to take on Michigan at 4 p.m.

“I think we continue to grow on both sides of the ball, offensively and defensively,” van de Kerkhof said. “It’s nice where we are right now, and I think the future looks bright for us.”