Sports
Ohio Field Hockey Cruises in 5-1 Win
By: Blake Baker
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Ohio field hockey improved to 8-6 as it cruised past conference foe Longwood 5-1 on Sunday.
The Bobcats’ third straight win vaulted them to 3-1 in MAC play, and puts head coach Neil Macmillan two wins away from most career wins in Ohio field hockey history.
Though the Bobcats ended way ahead on the scoreboard, the first half was evenly matched statistically. Ohio led six to five in shots, both teams had two penalty corner opportunities and each goalie ended the half with three saves.
Rachel Kho netted the game’s first goal 55 seconds in. The breakaway score was Kho’s first career goal.
Longwood found the back of the net on a Brenna Kinzel goal in the 22nd minute as she was assisted by Becky Danaher off a penalty corner.
The Green and White scored twice more in the first half. Elena Curley converted a penalty stroke in the 30th minute and assisted a Maria Russell goal two minutes later.
The first half ended 3-1 in favor of Ohio, and the Bobcats piled on two more goals in the second. Maria Russell scored again in the 55th minute on an assist from Hannah Kingsbury. The goal was Russell’s 12th on the season, which leads the MAC.
“She’s been fantastic,” Macmillan said. “She’s not scoring goals from a long way away, but most of her goals come from quick hand, clean up type goals, which are so essential. Goals help the team, and if we can continue to score lots of goals per game, we’re going to win the majority of the games we’ll play.”
The game’s final goal came in the 63rd minute when Adele Sammons scored her eighth goal of the year with the help of Kingsbury. This goal made it 5-1 – the game’s final score.
The ‘Cats have allowed only one goal each of the last three games, a stretch they hope to continue as the season winds down.
“We held Longwood really well,” Macmillan said. “They had one shot in the second half. It was a very convincing effort by us. However, we have to limit giving teams opportunities if we want to keep winning.”
The Bobcats will meet Kent State on Friday at 1 p.m. on the road as they look to extend their winning streak and inch closer to a MAC regular season title.