Sports
Ohio Captures Win In 88th Minute Off Harris’ Goal
< < Back to ?p=14065The Ohio soccer team (7-5-5, 3-3-3) entered Friday night’s game against the Toledo Rockets (5-11-1, 2-6-1), with Mid-American Conference playoff implications on the line. The Bobcats needed a spark to gain momentum for the final two games.
And they got it from Holly Harris.
The sophomore forward knocked in her second game-winner of the season in the 88th minute to give Ohio the 2-1 victory over Toledo, a team looking to knock Ohio out of the top eight seeds.
Harris’ fourth goal of the season and eighth of her career marked the second time this season that she found the back of the net in the final two minutes, with the previous coming in Ohio’s win over Niagara. Tonya Frasik, who assisted Harris in the Niagara game, picked up her fifth assist of the season on the play.
The Bobcats received a strong performance once again by goalkeeper Mattie Liston, who made 13 saves, moving her to fifth all-time in the MAC with 391 in her career. The senior has made 35 saves in her last three games.
Toledo outshot the Bobcats, 27-9, and put 14 shots on goal to Ohio’s five. The 27 total shots allowed were a season high for the Bobcats.
After a scoreless first half, the Rockets broke the 0-0 tie in the 65th minute on an own goal, but Ohio quickly responded with Liz Finley’s fourth goal of the season in the 67th minute. Lexi Milesky had the assist on the play, her third of the season.
With the playoffs approaching, a win or tie helps Ohio make that push toward the postseason. Each MAC team gets three points for a win and one point for a tie.
After Friday’s win, the Bobcats currently sit in seventh out of a pool of eight teams that make the playoffs, with 12 points. The teams pushing close behind Ohio are Northern Illinois, Buffalo, Akron and Toledo. The Huskies, who are now four points behind Ohio, play Kent State at 7 p.m. Friday night.
Ohio will have an opportunity to determine its playoff destiny on Sunday at 2 p.m., as it travels to DeKalb, Ill., to take on Northern Illinois. A win would guarantee the Bobcats a playoff berth.