Nov. 8, 2011
ATHENS, Ohio - The dream season continues for Ohio Field Hockey as it advanced to the NCAA Tournament for a third time with a 2-1 overtime victory this afternoon against Patriot League champion Lafayette in a play-in game at Pruitt Field.
Taylor Brown upped her goal tally to 15 with both scores on the day for the Bobcats. The junior from Elkton, Md. scored the game-winner, her sixth of the season, at 81:27 to send Ohio to its first NCAA Tournament since 2007.
Brown was released into a 2v1 situation and kept the ball, shooting low past the Lafayette goalkeeper for the decider. Brown was one of a handful of current Bobcats that reached the NCAA Play-In game in 2009, but fell to Richmond at home.
Lafayette drew first blood in the 23rd minute as Deanna DiCroce deflected a Maria Machalick shot off a corner attempt into the top of the net to give the Leopards an early 1-0 lead. The Leopards controlled most of the play in the first half, outshooting the Bobcats 5-2.
Ohio would respond with vigor in the second half, creating a series of corner attempts to keep play in Lafayette territory. Brown would finally give the ‘Cats the spark they needed in the 46th minute as she ripped a shot into the bottom right corner after a setup from Laura Mastro (Endwell, N.Y.) and Jessica Jue (Vancouver, British Columbia) to even the score 1-1.
Jue and Mastro lead the Bobcats in assists this season with 17 and 14 helpers, respectively. Both their totals have surpassed the single-season record, which was previously 12 assists.
Play would remain in the Lafayette zone for the majority of the second half as Ohio outshot the Leopards 9-2 in the stanza. Multiple penalty-corner attempts gave the ‘Cats a multitude of scoring chances, but Lafayette goalkeeper Jessica Deutsch was able to suppress any Ohio attack.
Heading into overtime, Ohio had outshot the Leopards 11-7 and taken a lead in penalty corners, 9-5.
The Bobcats won a play-in contest in 2007 against American, and then lost in the NCAA First Round to nationally-ranked Michigan. The only other time that Ohio has advanced to the NCAA Tournament was in 2001, and oddly enough, current Head Coach Neil Macmillan was an assistant on the Wake Forest team that defeated the Bobcats.
Ohio is now one victory away from matching the 1982 field hockey team for the school record of 20 wins during a single season. Today, the Bobcats matched the current MAC record for wins with their 19th of the season (Ball State - 1994, 1997; Kent State - 2000).
The Bobcats advance to the NCAA Tournament and will play at No. 1 North Carolina this Saturday, November 12. Time is to be determined.
