Ohio State freshman midfielder Luciano Pechota (14) scored the second of two goals in No. 23 Ohio State’s 2-1 win over No. 15 Indiana during a top-25 matchup in Columbus Sunday. Credit: Zachary Rilley | Photo Editor
During the 44th minute in a game against No. 15 Indiana Sunday, freshman midfielder Luciano Pechota achieved a personal milestone he won’t forget.
Luciano scored the first goal of his Buckeye career, helping the team in a 2-1 victory and keeping No. 22 Ohio State’s undefeated season preserved.
The Avon, Ohio, native has started hot in 2022, notching two assists against Cal Poly Aug. 28 en route to being named to the 2022 Wolstein Classic All-Tournament Team. He’s also played in all seven games this season.
After Pechota almost scored his first goal against Akron Sept. 13, he said he knew that if he had another opportunity to score, he had to deliver.
“I missed the chance, and after the game I kind of knew if I put that goal away, the game could have been different,” Pechota said. “I just knew if I got another opportunity, I was just going to put it away. I had a feeling before the game, and when I got my opportunity, I took it.”
Pechota suffered a labrum tear prior to arriving at Ohio State,head coach Brian Maisonneuve said. Although he trained throughout the offseason, he fully recovered at the start of preseason practice.
However, Maisonneuve said Pechota worked to regain form at Ohio State throughout the summer, and he was able to get his body where it needed to be by the first match of the season Aug. 25.
“When you’re coming back from that kind of injury, sometimes other things start hurting,” Maisonneuve said. “I mean talk about a guy who’s dialed in just in terms of taking care of his body rehab. He did a great job over the summer, and obviously it’s paid off.”
Pechota’s teammates were also thrilled for him, including senior midfielder Xavier Green. Green said he’s impressed with the contributions from the Buckeye freshmen so far this season, highlighting Pechota.
“What shows on the field is what he does in practice,” Green said. “He’s always talking. He’s always working hard. He’s always pushing the other guys. He has been a great asset for this team, and he is going to be a great player in the future.”
Pechota said he feels he wouldn’t be competing at the collegiate level without the help of his teammates. He said upperclassmen — including junior midfielder Laurence Wootton, redshirt junior defenders Owen Sullivan and Sean Ryan in addition to senior midfielder Brayden Durbin — have helped him adjust with the transition to college soccer.
“The culture of this team makes it easy to step into this role,” Pechota said. “We have something this year, and the culture of this team has kind of brought us through games like this so far, and we’re still undefeated because of that.”
Ohio State has gotten out to its best start to a season under Maisonneuve, and Pechota has played a role in helping the Buckeyes maintain an unblemished record so far.
Maisonneuve said he’s seen Pechota’s hard work since the beginning of preseason, and the first goal of Pechota’s career is the latest exhibit of that.
“He’s been aggressive the whole time here. He started with 10 to 15 minutes a game, and his work rate, his technical ability and his positioning has just earned him more and more time, which has been fantastic,” Maisonneuve said. “You look at what he brings to the field, I mean, he’s such an asset to us and he just adds a spark.”
