Nov. 8, 2008

Box Score

KENT, Ohio - The Ohio field hockey team could not find the magic that allowed them to capture the last two Mid-American Conference Tournament titles, as the third-seeded Bobcats (11-12) fell to host and No. 1 seed Kent State (17-4), 1-0, in the MAC championship game Saturday afternoon.

“I think the game was very worthy of a championship game,” Ohio head coach Neil Macmillan said. “Both teams fought really well and Kent State just found the goal to propel them to the win. I think the two best teams in the conference this year were fighting it out for the title. I’m very proud of our team for the way they played all season and through the long weekend.”

Both teams struggled to find offense in the first half, as each team managed just one shot in the opening 20 minutes. The best scoring opportunity of the period belonged to Kent State when Debbie Bell fired a shot off a penalty corner, but Ohio’s Jessie Martin (Louisville, Ky.) was there to make the save. The squads entered the break in a scoreless tie, with the Bobcats holding a 3-2 edge in shots. Both teams had two penalty corners, while Bell had the half’s lone shot on goal.

Ohio came out firing in the second stanza, as the ’Cats took four of the first five shots of the half, including three on goal, but the Flashes’ Caroline Suitch stopped all three. After Ohio was unable to capitalize, Kent State scored the game’s lone goal in the 54th minute, as redshirt junior Natalie Barrett slipped the ball past Martin. Sophomore Rachel Miller tallied the assist on the score.

The Bobcats would earn a pair of corners following the KSU goal, but the ’Cats were unsuccessful in drawing the match even. Ohio was unable to put any more pressure on the Golden Flashes, as Barrett’s score gave Kent State the win.

“The one thing it came down to was executing and attacking the goal,” Macmillan said. “We did a good job of our build up and play up to the attack, but unfortunately we couldn’t finish a goal today.”

Despite the loss, the Bobcats outshot KSU 8-7 and held a 6-4 advantage in penalty corners, with both teams getting three shots on goal. Schutte, along with juniors Marcy Dull (Ephrata, Pa.) and Katelyn Shelley (Ephrata, Pa.) paced Ohio with two shots each. Bell led the Flashes with three shots.

Martin made two saves in the loss for Ohio, while Suitch had all three of her saves for KSU in the second period.

“We looked fresh and had a good attack. Statistically we matched them, if not bettered them, so our third game in three days had no effect,” Macmillan said. “They just put the one goal in and if we had put one away earlier, I think it would’ve been a different story.”

Dull, along with seniors Rachelle Coetzee (Bloemfontein, S.A.) and Nikki Gnozzio (Flanders, N.J.) were named to the All-Tournament Team. It was Coetzee’s third-consecutive selection to the All-Tournament Team, while Gnozzio garnered a spot on the team for a second season.

The Bobcats finished the season with a double-digit win total for the third-straight year.

All-Tournament Team
Samantha Sandham, CMU
Melinda Curran, CMU
Mary Hull, Miami
Danielle Gaynor, Miami
Marcy Dull, Ohio
Nikki Gnozzio, Ohio
Rachelle Coetzee, Ohio
Nicole Leach, KSU
Rachel Miller, KSU
Natalie Barrett, KSU
Allison Kittelberger, KSU