Gophers Soccer: Tarah Hobbs earns first Big Ten weekly award

After backstopping the Minnesota women’s soccer team to a 1-0 victory over No. 7 Penn State on Sunday, freshman goalkeeper Tarah Hobbs earned her first Big Ten weekly award on Monday.

With her efforts, Hobbs was named the Defensive Player and Co-Freshman of the Week by the Big Ten.

The Hugo, Minn. native also helped the Golden Gophers to a 0-0 tie against the Ohio State Buckeyes last Friday — both matches were at home and kept Minnesota undefeated at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium.

Minnesota is now 9-3-1 overall on the season and will likely land in the NSCAA Top 25 rankings for the first time this season, when they are released on Tuesday. Hobbs has been impressive in her first season with the Maroon and Gold and already leads the conference in save percentage and saves per match.

She is ranked No. 18 in the nation in save percentage and is fifth among freshman. Minnesota will look to keep their hot play alive when they travel on the road to Evanston to take on the Northwestern Wildcats on Saturday.

In Other News…

• Following their road split against Nebraska and Iowa last week, the Minnesota volleyball team fell to No. 11 overall in the AVCA Division I Coaches Poll. The Gophers dropped three spots from No. 8 after their loss to the Cornhuskers in straight sets and then erasing a two-set deficit to beat the Hawkeyes. Things don’t get easier for Minnesota as they take on No. 4 Penn State on Wednesday and No. 14 Ohio State on Saturday, both are on the road.
• After extending their unbeaten streak to 51 games, the Minnesota women’s hockey team stayed atop the USCHO Division I Women’s Poll. Their road sweep against Colgate was backed by a seven point performance from junior forward Rachel Bona. The Gophers host No. 4 Wisconsin to open WCHA play this weekend at Ridder Arena.

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