ATHENS, Ohio – The Ohio field hockey (4-4, 2-1 MAC) team returned to action Friday (Sept. 29), putting on an offensive show in front of the home crowd, defeating Longwood (2-9, 0-3 MAC), 7-0, in a Mid-American Conference matchup at Pruitt Field.
Ohio's seven goals are the most in a match since Sept. 11, 2021, when the Bobcats defeated Saint Louis 7-3 in Athens.
Overall, Ohio scored seven goals on 22 shots, with 14 on goal, while taking five corners. Longwood finished the match with five shots, three on goal and had three corners.
Individually, seven different Bobcats scored and were led by graduate student
Katelyn Whittle (Glenwood, Md.) with one goal and two assists on four shots. Freshman
Johanna Hildebrandt (Berlin, Germany) scored her first career goal and recorded three assists. Junior
Noa Desmaretz (Antwerp, Belgium), junior
Bodhi Littlefield (Oakland, Maine), freshman
Pauline Hartlieb (Leverkusen, Germany), sophomore
Mary Huffman (Ypsilanti, Mich.) and freshman
Emily Beitzel (Hershey, Pa.) all recorded goals. Sophomore
Sasha Dikotla (Johannesburg, South Africa), senior
Maddie Coombe (Louisville, Ky.) and freshman
Natalie LaFleur (Fredericksburg, Va.) all added assists.
In the cage, senior
Macy Lotze (Louisville, Ky.) led the way with the shutout, recording three saves on five shots faced in the victory.
"That's the team that I know that can play really, really strong hockey," head coach
Ali Johnstone said. "They never gave up. And even if the flow was a bit slow, we kept the pace and we kept the pressure and that's something that we've been working on."
The Ohio offense took control early in the first quarter, getting the first three shots of the match, while keeping the pressure on Longwood. The constant push in the offensive end finally paid off in the 10
th minute when Hildebrandt scored with assists from Whittle and LaFleur. The goal was Hildebrandt's first of her career.
Ohio kept up the pressure in the second quarter. After Longwood recorded its first attempt of the match early in the quarter, Ohio recorded the first penalty corer of the match. The Bobcats kept up the pressure over the final 10 minutes, living in the offensive zone. However, Ohio was unable to capitalize and add on, sending the game to the half with the Bobcats leading, 1-0.
Ohio finished the first half with one goal and 10 shots, while Lotze registered one save.
Ohio opened the third quarter once again keeping the pressure in the Longwood end. After the Lancers held off the Bobcats' first three attempts, Ohio added on with an unassisted goal from Littlefield, putting Ohio up 2-0. Barely four minutes later, Ohio added on with back-to-back goals in under 30 seconds. The first one coming at 42:02 when Hartlieb scored off an assist from Hildebrandt. Then at 42:29, Whittle scored a one timer off an assist from Dikotla, putting the Bobcats ahead, 4-0, after three quarters.
The Ohio offense refused to let up in the fourth quarter. In the 53
rd minute, a goal from Beitzel from Whittle and Hildebrandt increased the lead to 5-0. The Bobcats weren't finished and in n the 58
th minute, Desmaretz scored on a diving play thanks to a perfectly placed ball from Coombe, increasing the lead to 6-0.
Ohio wrapped up the scoring just over 60 seconds later when Huffman scored her first career goal with the help of Hildebrandt, securing the Bobcats, 7-0 victory.
Ohio is back in action on Friday, Oct. 6 when the Bobcats host Miami. First touch is scheduled for 12 p.m. ET at Pruitt Field.
#OUohyeah
