Senior defender Erin O’Neil (21) flashes a smile during Ohio State’s 10-9 win over Temple in Philadelphia, PA Sunday. Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State Athletics
After losing their last four games, the Buckeyes finally came out on top.
The Ohio State women’s lacrosse team (8-8, 1-5 Big Ten) took down the Temple Owls (9-5, 4-1 AAC) in a 10-9 victory at the Howarth Field in Philadelphia Sunday, closing out its regular season on a high note.
The first quarter opened with two quick goals from the Owls, completed by graduate attacker Julie Schickling and midfielder Maeve Tobin. The Buckeyes were quick to respond with two goals from junior midfielder Annie Hargraves and attacker Jamie Lasda, a senior captain who leads the team with 40 goals.
Junior attacker Amelia Wright scored later in the first, but senior captain and attacker Leah Sax helped the Buckeyes regain the lead with two goals at the end of the quarter, making the score 4-3.
Senior captain and goalie Regan Alexander, who currently ranks fourth in the university’s history with 449 saves, had five while junior goalie Taylor Grollman had two.
The Buckeyes continued to flourish in the second quarter with three goals scored, along with an increase in defense, limiting the Owls to only one goal. The Buckeyes’ goals were scored by Hargraves, freshman midfielder Maeve Simonds and freshman attacker Kate Tyack.
Junior midfielder Erin King scored for the Owls, making the score 7-4 at halftime. Alexander had one save and Grollman had three.
The tone of the game switched in the third quarter, with only one Buckeye goal scored and three scored for the Owls. Junior attacker Brynn Ammerman, who currently leads the Buckeyes with 47 points, scored early in the quarter.
The Owls started to break Ohio State’s defense down. Graduate midfielder and 2023 AAC Midfielder of the Year Belle Mastropietro scored for the Owls alongside Wright and Tobin, putting them within striking distance at 8-7 at the end of the quarter.
In an intense final quarter, each team scored twice before the buzzer. Hargraves scored for the Buckeyes, completing a hat trick. Her goal was followed by two Temple goals, one by graduate attacker Mackenzie Roth and the other by Mastropietro, tying the game at nine apiece.
Sophomore attacker Zoe Coleman scored the final goal of the game, assisted by Ammerman, with less than four minutes remaining.
Coleman’s goal was left unanswered and Ohio State took home its third and final away game win of the regular season. Alexander had two saves while Grollman had one.
Moving into the Big Ten tournament, the Buckeyes will take on Penn State for the second time on Saturday at noon.
The No. 7 seed Buckeyes upset the No. 2 seed Nittany Lions 9-8 in Columbus in late March, but the upcoming game will take place at Panzer Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. The matchup will be streamed on Big Ten Plus.
