Boone, N.C.-  The Ohio field hockey team (1-6, 0-1 MAC), kicked off conference play in Boone, N.C. on Friday afternoon (Sept. 19), falling to Appalachian State (5-1, 1-0 MAC), 5-3.
 
As a team, the Bobcats recorded 12 shots with five on goal, while the Mountaineers had 17 shots with nine on goal.
 
Senior Anouk Plaehn (Hannover, Germany) led the Bobcats with three shots, including her first goal of the season to open the scoring on Friday. Senior Deborah James (Hertfordshire, England) and freshmen Katie Cole (Newark, Del.) and Tiana Nhamoinesu (Thirsk, North Yorkshire) added two shots each, with Cole converting her first goal as a Bobcat.
 
In the cage, sophomore Ash Stephenson (Kingston Upon Hull, England) made four saves on nine Mountaineer shots on goal, including a crucial penalty stroke save late in the fourth quarter with the game tied at 3-3.
 
The Mountaineers opened the game with pressure on the Bobcat defense, recording two shots in the first five minutes of play. The Bobcats were able to close the first quarter strong, with Plaehn netting her first goal of the season to give the Bobcats a 1-0 lead. Shortly thereafter, the Bobcats capitalized on a penalty corner when Cole scored her first goal of the season to give the Bobcats a 2-0 lead after 15 minutes of play.
 
The second quarter was a defensive struggle, with both teams combining for three total shots, leaving the score 2-0 at halftime.
 
Appalachian State cut the Bobcats' lead in half with an early third quarter goal, followed by another score off a deflection to tie the game at the 39:33 mark. The Mountaineers continued to put pressure on the Bobcat defense, forcing a penalty corner with seconds to go in the third period and converting, taking a 3-2 lead into the fourth.
 
Ohio rallied with four shots early in the fourth quarter, including one on net from Nhamoinesu forcing a diving stave from the Mountaineer goalkeeper. The Bobcats later converted when Ava Florence (Louisville, Ky.) scored her first goal as a Bobcat, tying the game at 3-3 at the 53:41 mark.
 
Minutes later the Mountaineers threatened again drawing a penalty stroke, and netminder Stephenson answered with a crucial save to thwart the scoring opportunity. However, the Mountaineers were able to convert twice in the final minutes of the game to claim a 5-3 victory.
 
The Bobcats will be back in action at Davidson on Sunday, Sept. 21 at 12 p.m. ET. The game will be available to watch on ESPN+. 
 
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