Field hockey coach Liz Tchou will take a trip down memory lane this weekend.
The former Iowa Hawkeye and 1996 U.S. Olympian will face old friends from both squads when Duke takes on Iowa and Penn State at the ACC-Big 10 Challenge in St. Louis, Mo.
Every ACC and Big 10 team will be present at the competition, which aims, in part, to raise awareness about field hockey in the St. Louis area. Festivities such as a clinic and a coaches' game are planned in addition to the NCAA games.
The coaches' game, featuring numerous former Olympians, could be a big draw.
"We're looking to kill them," Tchou said jokingly of the game. "It's going to be hilarious, like a reunion. I'll see a lot of my former teammates and friends."
In addition to the competition between the coaches, the tournament is an opportunity for the two conferences to measure up. The Big 10 was a strong field hockey conference in the mid-1980's, when Tchou won an NCAA championship as a Hawkeye, but the ACC has been more dominant since then.
Facing No. 20 Iowa on Saturday, Tchou will be less focused on reminiscing than securing the first win of the season.
Tchou still has several ties to the Hawkeyes-head coach Beth Beglin was an assistant coach while she played there-and knows the team's mentality.
"It's a workhorse team," she said. "Real blue-collar workers. I'm just hoping that we come out really strong."
The Blue Devils are hoping to avoid a repeat of their season opener on Tuesday, when they found themselves somewhat overmatched in their 7-0 loss to Old Dominion.
Before playing ODU, Duke (0-1) had not scrimmaged at all. Because this will be the season opener for Iowa, the Blue Devils are hoping that the experience of playing the Monarchs will give them an advantage.
"They (ODU) were so strong," Tchou said. "I would pick them as the No. 1 team in the country this year. To be that strong so early in the season is unbelievable."
Monday, Duke will face No. 5 Penn State (0-0), another one of the strongest teams in the country.
"Penn State is going to be great this year," Tchou said. "They are very experienced and very deserving of their ranking. They are very aggressive and play with a lot of spark and energy."
But with most of the schools in the ACC also ranked in the top 10, Duke's schedule won't get much easier.
"We have one of the toughest schedules in the country," Tchou said. "That's got to make us better. I don't think we'd want it any other way."
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