Ohio State junior forward Emaly Vatne (14) races towards the ball during the Ohio State-Maryland Big Ten Regional Tournament game April 8. Ohio State won 4-2. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
Ohio State (5-3) rounded out its nonconference schedule with a 4-1 loss to No. 6 TCU (7-0) behind an onslaught of second-half goals.
Although it was a tough loss all around, head coach Lori Walker-Hock was pleased by her team’s effort out on the pitch.
“I think we frustrated a very good team. We created a lot of chances to put us on the board, we just have to convert those,” Walker-Hock said.
In the first half, the Buckeyes and Horned Frogs battled back and forth, tallying a combined nine shots and each team finishing the half with one shot on goal apiece.
Both teams defensively kept each other’s offenses at bay with impressive back line play.
The defensive battle continued until the 65th-minute when TCU found the back of the net.
TCU freshman forward Lauren Memoly nailed a shot into the back of the goal after a great save attempt by senior goalkeeper Bailey Kolinski bounced off the left pole and gave Memoly sight to a wide open net.
The next goal came shortly after, when the TCU offense found its way to sliver through the Buckeye defense, resulting in a second goal for Memoly in the 68th-minute.
Down 2-0, the Buckeyes were in need of a goal, and they found it off the play of graduate forward Emaly Vatne.
Vatne gathered a pass in the box from junior forward Emma Sears and shot a rocket from way back in the box to find the upper right of the goal, which cut the TCU lead to one.
That goal was the first of the season for Vatne and her first since her hat trick performance in 2018.
“As soon as it came off my foot I knew it was going in,” Vatne said. “My next thought was immediately to try and do it again to come back and win.”
Although the Buckeyes continued to tally up shot attempts in the latter part of the game, finishing with 17, they were unable to find the net again.
With the Buckeyes on the constant attack, it opened up windows in Ohio State’s defense for TCU to exploit and that they did.
The next two goals for TCU came off of the play of senior forward Messiah Bright, who found the back of the net in the 83rd- and the 86th-minute to cap off a Horned Frog victory.
This was the second meeting all-time between the Buckeyes and TCU , with the Horned Frogs winning the last matchup 3-2 in 2019.
The Buckeyes end their seven game home stretch and hit the road Sunday to take on the University of Maryland at 2 p.m.
