Oct. 4, 2008
Box Score
MUNCIE, Ind. -
The Ohio field hockey team used a powerful attack to defeat the Ball State Cardinals, 4-0, Saturday afternoon at the BSU Turf Field. With the win, the Bobcats (5-5, 3-0 MAC) have beaten the Cardinals (1-9, 0-2 MAC) in 19 of their last 20 meetings, dating back to 2001. The win also gave the 'Cats their first three-game win streak of the season and gave them a 3-0 start in conference play for a fourth-straight year, all under head coach Neil Macmillan.
"We did a good job with our offense today," Macmillan said. "The game plan was executed really well. We took away a lot of their options and were able to execute ourselves, making the most of our opportunities."
Ohio didn't waste any time getting on the board, as senior Rachelle Coetzee (Bloemfontein, S.A.) scored the first of her two goals on the day merely three minutes into the contest. The goal was unassisted.
Ohio would maintain the one-goal lead at the break and outshot Ball State 5-1 in the first frame.
The Bobcats continued to control play in the second half and would again find the back of the net as junior Marcy Dull (Ephrata, Pa.) notched her first goal of the season in the 44th minute to give the 'Cats a 2-0 lead. Junior Taylor Anderson (Pittsburgh, Pa.) tallied her first-career assist on the goal.
There would be no chance of a Cardinal comeback, as the Bobcats sealed the game with a pair of goals less than two minutes apart midway through the second stanza. First, senior Nikki Gnozzio (Flanders, N.J.) put Ohio on top 3-0 in the 59th minute, with her third goal of the season. Senior Estienne Coetzee (Bloemfontein, S.A.) notched her first assist of the year on the goal. Rachelle Coetzee would then score again for the `Cats to put the final score at 4-0. Rachelle's second goal of the game gave her a team-best six goals on the season and four goals in her last three games. Senior Lauren Stahlhuth (St. Louis, Mo.) earned her team-high fourth assist of the season on Rachelle's second tally.
Everyone saw the field for the Bobcats in the game for just the second time this season.
Ohio outshot Ball State 8-5 for the match and also held the advantage in penalty corners, 7-4. Rachelle led the Bobcats with four shots, while Dull fired three. Rachelle's four shots put her in sixth place on Ohio's career shots list. The Cardinals were paced by senior Jodi Mann and junior Brooke MacGillivary, who each took two shots.
Senior goalie Jessie Martin (Louisville, Ky.) needed to make just two saves to earn her second-consecutive shutout, giving her 10 career shutouts. Freshman Jen McGill (Louisville, Ky.) also saw time in the net for the `Cats, playing in just her second-career game. Ball State junior Tiffany Shifflett made two saves in goal for the Cardinals.
"I think it comes down to preparation for the MAC season," Macmillan said of his lockdown defense. "We really challenged ourselves prior to the MAC season with a tough non-conference schedule and it has paid dividends."
Ohio returns to action tomorrow at 1 p.m. in Oxford, Ohio as they take on the Miami RedHawks, who dropped their first conference match of the season to Kent State, 2-1, today. Live stats are available for the game by clicking here.
