With the Penn State field hockey team streaking through its non-conference schedule, it looks to be the team to beat in the Big Ten.

The No. 6 Nittany Lions, the only undefeated team left in both the Big Ten and Div. I, have won the first seven games of the 2002 season while only allowing two goals all season. The team has also posted 13 straight wins over non-conference opponents. Sounds like good numbers to make a run for the Big Ten title.

However, there are six other Big Ten teams looking to spoil Penn State's hopes. With five Big Ten teams ranked in the top 20 and three in the top 10, there looks to be plenty of top-level competition.

"The competition's great," Penn State field hockey coach Char Morett said. "The rivalries we've developed between all the schools now have just made the conference that much more exciting and unpredictable."

With Penn State playing so well early on, the team is no longer playing as the underdog, as they were last season, according to junior forward Timarie Legel. Legel feels that everyone will be coming out to play the Lions hard -- especially Michigan, Michigan State and Iowa.

Michigan

The Wolverines are coming off the program's first NCAA title. The defending national champions are currently ranked No. 2 in the NFHCA Coaches poll and have posted a record of 7-1 thus far.

Several close games have seen the Wolverines come away with key wins, most recently a 2-1 overtime win over then-No. 12 Northeastern. The team is also undefeated at home, in six games. Luckily for the Nittany Lions, Michigan will be traveling here for their game on Oct. 25.

While Michigan does not dominate in its style of play, the team always seems to find a way to win. Several wins have seen the Wolverines come from behind with late goals or overtime wins.

April Fronzoni leads the team with eight goals and one assist.

Head coach Marcia Pankratz picked up her 100th career win earlier this season when the Wolverines beat the University of Connecticut 2-1. Pankratz has coached her entire career at Michigan.

Michigan State

The Lions will open their Big Ten schedule on Friday when they travel to East Lansing to take on the No. 6 Spartans (8-1).

The Spartans, last season's Big Ten champions, advanced to the second round of last year's NCAA tournament, where they lost to the Wolverines, 2-1, in overtime.

Michigan State currently leads the conference in goals scored and goals per game, with 37 and 5.29, respectively. Michigan is a distant second with 20 and 3.33, respectively.

Led by sophomore midfielder Annabet Beerman, who has posted 11 goals and four assists, the Spartans have played and beaten several top 20 teams this season. Their only loss of the season came to No. 1 Old Dominion, 3-2, in overtime.

Beerman scored the only goal needed to beat previously undefeated No. 4 James Madison this past Saturday. Michigan State also boasts current Big Ten defensive player of the week in sophomore goalie Christina Kirklady for her performance in shutting out James Madison.

The Spartans are coached by 2001 Big Ten Coach of the Year Michele Madison, whose main focus for the season has been total team strength and team chemistry.

"We train to attack, to dominate the momentum of the game with a fast paced attack and a total team defense," Madison said. "This team is in it together. They believe in each other to carry out their roles selflessly."

Iowa

The No. 12 Hawkeyes (5-3) have had a difficult start to their season with tough losses to top ranked North Carolina, Louisville and California-Berkley. At the same time, the Hawkeyes have also posted shutouts against Wake Forest, UConn, Providence and Stanford.

All of Iowa's games thus far have been on the road. Their first home game of the season will be played on Saturday against Northwestern so the team is extremely excited about the prospect of finally playing in front of their home crowd.

Senior Tiffany Leister leads the team in point total while Barbara Weinberg has been doing a solid job in goal.

"Because Tiffany plays the midfield/back position, she hasn't had a lot of opportunities to score," Iowa field hockey coach Tracey Griesbaum said. "But she's done a good job of getting the open shot and taking it."