In the fourth annual Showdown in the ‘Shoe, the Ohio State men’s lacrosse seniors walked out of Ohio Stadium for the last time in defeat, falling, 11-9, despite making a late run at the Fairfield Stags.
The Buckeyes shot early and often, outshooting the Stags almost 2-1, but the ball simply did not reach the goal in the first half. The Buckeyes went into halftime on a 5-2 deficit, even though they led in almost every other respect.
The Buckeyes’ shots reached the cage often, but Fairfield junior goalkeeper Charlie Cipriano came up with 12 saves.
“They’ve got a great goalie. I think he’s been a key to their season all year,” OSU coach Nick Myers said after the game. “He made some great saves. We had some quality shots on the cage.”
The game began on a hopeful note for the Buckeyes, with senior midfielder Mike Pires scoring the first goal of the game early in the first quarter.
The Stags of Fairfield, Conn., then scored three unanswered goals, and then matched the only other goal in the first half, scored by OSU sophomore midfielder Dominique Alexander. Alexander led OSU with two goals, along with freshman attackman Tyler Frederick.
The second half proved to be more eventful, with OSU scoring seven goals. The Stags countered with six goals, hanging on for the win.
Particularly troublesome for the Buckeyes were Fairfield sophomore attackman Sam Snow and junior midfielder Brent Adams, who logged three goals apiece.
Senior captain Bryce Woodson, a midfielder, said it was a tough loss at home.
“It definitely hurts,” Woodson said. “It is an honor and privilege to be in here, and you definitely want to come out with a win.”
Senior midfielder Scott Lathrop said he had mixed feelings walking off the field at Ohio Stadium for the last time.
“It is sad and exciting at the same time with not being able to do it again,” Lathrop said. “But it was a lot of fun and I’ll remember it for the rest of my life.”
The loss puts OSU at 7-7 overall and 2-3 in Eastern College Athletic Conference play.
The Buckeyes travel to Louisville, Ky., to face Bellarmine at 3 p.m. Saturday in the team’s last regular-season game.
