Sports
Ohio dominates West Virginia to earn its first sweep of the season
By: Andrew Bowlby
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — Ohio wrapped up its first weekend series of the season with a resounding 5-1 win over West Virginia.
Heading into the matchup, the Bobcats were coming off a 7-3 victory over the Mountaineers on Friday night.
Head coach Lionel Mauron elected to start newcomer Scott Bird in net for the first time.
“He’s looked good in the past two weeks,” Mauron said. “I thought he was solid, he moves well, he reads the play well, I trust him.”
Quickly after the opening faceoff, Ohio was on the attack, generating multiple chances in the first few minutes. The Bobcats were unable to find the back of the net until late in the first because of Mountaineers goaltender Will Simpson.
Simpson made a handful of flashy saves to keep the game scoreless throughout the majority of the first.
It wasn’t until the final two minutes that Ohio was able to convert on the chances it was creating. On the first power-play of the night, Laker Aldridge scored his third goal of the weekend.
“I think he needs to shoot the puck a little more,” Mauron said. “It’s a work in progress. He’s great for us, he brings a lot of offense, so we’re lucky to have him.”
Ohio doubled down and scored another goal just 33 seconds later. This time on a point shot from Lucas Renzoni. The Bobcats were screaming into the locker room up 2-0 at the end of the first period.
The second period was gritty and defensive. Both teams struggled to string passes together to create consistent offense. The Mountaineers were able to score an early goal on the power-play which pulled them back within one.
Aside from the early marker in the second, West Virginia had problems producing high-danger chances. Ohio was able to disrupt the Mountaineer rhythm from start to finish.
Heading into the third, Ohio held a one goal lead. The Bobcats expanded their lead to 4-1 midway through the third with goals from Mathieu Ovaert and Hollander Thompson respectively.
The Bobcats capped off a strong offensive night with a late goal from freshman Noah Holt. Holt finished his first weekend in an Ohio uniform with a goal in each game plus one assist Saturday.
“(The) guys are great, the coaches are great,” Holt said. “The amount of effort and time that’s put into this program is amazing. I’m really thrilled to be here, no place I’d rather be right now.”
Ohio finished the night with a stark 46-17 advantage on the shot clock. Even with the heavy advantage, Mauron wanted more from his team.
“I think we need to get more pucks on net,” Mauron said. “We could’ve had 70 shots.”
Scott Bird turned aside 16-of-17 shots to earn his first victory with Ohio.
The Bobcats will face Calvin at Bird Arena on Oct. 6 and 7.