Sports
Ohio Field Hockey: Bobcats back in win column with win over Longwood
By: Jack Demmler
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ATHENS, Ohio — After losing two games on the road, the Ohio field hockey team (5-3, 2-1) looked to get back on track as they welcomed the Longwood Lancers (5-5, 1-1) to Pruitt Field.
The strong defensive play from the Bobcats allowed them to get over .500 in MAC play with a 2-1 victory.
The game started slow offensively for the Bobcats as they were held to only two shots in the first period.
It wouldn’t be until the tenth minute of the opening period that the Bobcats would get on the board. Karynne Baker found he back of the net off an assist from Kendall Ballard during an Ohio corner to give the Bobcats the early lead.
Despite the slow offensive start, the Bobcats’ defense played with a lot of aggression, forcing the Lancers to spend most of their possession on their half of the field.
Head coach Ali Johnstone commended her team for their strong defensive outing.
“Defensively, we stood our ground,” Ohio head coach Ali Johnstone said. “We were low and we were relentless and that’s what it takes. It comes down to our defense. Really being able to put pressure on them in their third.”
The Ohio defense only gave up three shots in the first half, all of which came in the first period. The Bobcats forced a shutout going into the half with a 1-0 lead.
The defense stayed aggressive throughout and the offense seemed to build off that aggression. After only having two shots in the first period, the Bobcats ended with 13 total shots, most of which came in the fourth period.
A crucial part to Longwood staying in the game was the work of its goalkeeper, Katie Wyman, who had seven saves on the day, most coming in the fourth period.
The defense seemed to fall apart a little in the fourth period as Karly Harwood, Longwood’s leading scorer, got the Lancers on the board with 12:25 left in the game.
The Bobcats looked to one of their leading scorers to give them the lead and ultimately the victory. In similar fashion to their first goal, Kendall Ballard set Leah Warren up for the game-winning goal with nine minutes left to play.
“We just have to be super aggressive, which we were,” Warren said of the team’s game plan. “Just keeping the pressure on them then let the goals follow.”
The Bobcats will look to build off Saturday’s win as they host the 15th ranked team in the nation, Ohio State, Sunday at 2:00 pm.
“What we need to improve on for (Sunday) is our possession,” Johnstone said. “Once we’ve done all that hard work, instead of throwing the ball away, it’s just finding the pass. (Sunday’s) gonna be a really fast paced game. We need to be really diligent with our communication so we can cover the dangerous lines.”