Oct. 13, 2013

Box Score

FENTON, Mo. â€" Behind a strong performance from senior Luli Gomez Teruel (Salta, Argentina), the Ohio University field hockey team (5-7, 1-0 MAC) swept its two game-road swing with a 4-1 victory over Saint Louis (1-12) Sunday afternoon at the Billikens’ Soccer Park.

Teruel led Ohio with a four points on two goals while taking three shots to lead the Ohio offense. She has notched a team-best 21 points so far this season. The Bobcats never trailed in the match and led 2-0 at halftime before notching another two goals in the second stanza.

“We had a great second half performance today and did a nice job of spreading the ball around,” head coach Neil Macmillan said. “I was very happy with how we combined to really play our system better than we have all season. We came out so strong at the start of the second half and really set the tone for the rest of the match.”

Senior Katherine Fenzel (Louisville, Ky.) also notched her second goal of the season for the Bobcats, while junior Caelyn Hartley (Escondido, Calif.) set up the Bobcat offense with three points on a goal and an assist in the contest.

Junior Lauryl Desch (Charlottesville, Va.) and senior Riley Higgins (Louisville, Ky.) also notched assists for the Green & White. It marked the second assist of Higgins’ career.

Ohio controlled the offensive zone throughout the match and held advantages in shots (19-14) and corners (8-6) for the contest.

Junior goalkeeper Brittany Walker (Elizabethtown, Pa.) got the win for the ‘Cats after making six saves while allowing just one goal in 66:20 of action. Redshirt freshman Lina Trucco (Lake Bluff, Ill.) played the remaining 3:40 and allowed no goals in her stint in the cage.

The Billikens controlled the first eight minutes of action, forcing two penalty corners while notching a shot on goal that was saved by Walker.

Ohio answered back soon after, as sophomore Adele Sammons (Upminster, England) notched two shots at 8’ and 12’ that were saved by Saint Louis goalkeeper Tori Westhead.

After back and forth action absorbed the next eight minutes of action, Fenzel put Ohio on the board in the 20th minute by taking a pass from Hartley and rifling it past Westhead for the score.

Desch notched well-placed shots that were stopped by St. Louis at 24’ and 25’, before Gomez Teruel fed Hartley for her first goal of the season at 26’ to give the ‘Cats a 2-0 lead. Ohio entered the break with a two-goal edge.

Just one minute into the second half, Gomez Teruel struck for her first score at 36’. After the Billikens answered at 48’ to cut the deficit to two (3-1), the senior from Salta again showed her scoring prowess, with a goal off a good feed from Higgins. The score again gave Ohio a three-goal cushion (4-1).

Walker stepped up to preserve the lead in the 66th minute with three strong saves after the Billikens penetrated the Ohio zone. Saint Louis could not muster another legitimate scoring opportunity in the final four minutes of action, and Ohio hung on for the 4-1 victory.

The Bobcats now return to home to play their first match of the season at Pruitt Field. Ohio will host Central Michigan next Saturday (Oct. 19) at 1 p.m.

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