Ohio State freshman back Juliette Dusquene shoots a penalty during the Buckeyes’ 1-0 loss to Michigan on Sept. 22. Credit: Colin Hass-Hill | Sports Editor
The Ohio State field hockey team (6-6, 0-4 Big Ten) fell to No. 5 Penn State Nittany Lions (11-2, 4-1 Big Ten) 3-0 as junior midfielder Gini Bramley’s two goals boosted the Nittany Lions Friday afternoon at Buckeye Varsity Field.
The Nittany Lions controlled the pace and the ball for most of the game, showing why they’re one of the top teams in the country. Ohio State struggled offensively as it only managed seven shots, six of which came in the first half, and frequently turned the ball over.
“We were not taking care of the ball,” head coach Jarred Martin said. “They are a fast team with good players up front and we started playing too much defense.”
The game was even to start out, but a breakthrough came after Ohio State freshman back Juliette Duquesne was given a green card three minutes in. The Nittany Lions were able to use the extra body to put in the first goal of the game when Bramley was able to slot the ball past senior goalkeeper Liz Tamburro in a one-on-one situation.
The Buckeyes tried to recover with three penalty corners over the next 10 minutes, but all shots were denied by junior goalkeeper Jenny Rizzo.
With more than four minutes left in the half, Bramley netted her second goal of the game after junior forward Moira Putsch’s cross snuck past Tamburro and Bramley slammed it into the open net.
The Buckeyes went into the half down 2-0 while being outshot 9-6.
Penn State imposed their will on the Buckeyes in the second half. They spent much of the 35 minutes in possession of the ball on Ohio State’s half of the field.
Penn State struck the final blow to the Buckeyes with 10 minutes left with as junior midfielder/forward Aurellia Meijer sent a pristine cross to Putsch who fired a laser of a shot into the back of the net.
“They came out pretty strong and played a little bit smarter than we did,” Tamburro said.
The Buckeyes offensive woes were evident, as the first shot for them in the half didn’t come until inside the last two minutes of the game. Martin said that the team can’t afford any mental mistakes in marquee games like Friday’s.
Tamburro saved 10 of the Nittany Lions’ 14 shots on goal.
“We gotta make sure we stay mentally focused in the game when we play against these good teams,” Martin said. “We know we can compete.”
Ohio State plays the Cal Golden Bears Sunday as part of the Buckeye Invitational.
