Sports
Ohio completes its Cinderella run in the MAC Tournament with a 2-1 victory for the school’s first women’s soccer title in program history
By: Ayden Crowley
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) – Two second half goals lift Ohio past Kent State for its first women’s soccer MAC championship in program history.
Ohio won its last two games of the regular season to sneak into the MAC Tournament as the sixth seed and it took advantage of the opportunity.
The Bobcats upset third-seeded Ball State 2-0, and second-seeded Bowling Green 2-1 to shock the conference and punch their ticket to the championship game.
Kent State had a similar story as the fourth seed, and it was those Golden Flashes who set the tone early.
Just two and a half minutes into the match, Golden Flash freshman Alanna Raimondo found the back of the net with a slow-rolling goal to put Ohio in a 1-0 hole early.
The two sides traded blows for the remainder of the half, but excellent play from goalkeepers Celeste Sloma and Sarah Melen kept the game deadlocked at 1-0.
Melen tallied six saves in the first half alone.
Things seemed to stall in the second half. Both sides were unable to maintain possession and generate scoring opportunities.
That changed when Kali Stock launched one past Melen from the edge of the box at the 55 minute mark of the match.
It was Stock’s first goal of the season and could not have come at a better time.
The goal opened the door for the Bobcats and they would go on to kick the whole thing down.
Just 10 minutes later, Scout Murray fired one into the back of the net from beyond the box to give Ohio the lead.
It’s Murray’s second goal in as many games, her fifth on the season, and most importantly, the biggest goal in the history of Ohio women’s soccer.
It felt like a lopsided second half. The Bobcats maintained possession and fired off shot after shot. This is the aggression that Ohio played with the entire season and it finally paid off for the Bobcats.
Ohio generated 10 shots on goal on the day compared to just four for the Golden Flashes.
Once the second goal found the back of the net, it was up to the Ohio defense to hold out for the remainder of the game.
The team stood tall and shut down every push Kent State mounted against the Bobcats.
Sloma played one of her best games of her season with four total saves, and three critical ones in the second half.
The Bobcats held out for the remainder of the game and closed out its first MAC championship in school history.
Ohio punches its ticket to the NCAA tournament that begins on Nov 10.