Junior Kailyn Dudukovich (21) hugs freshman Ava Bramblett (4) after she scored a goal for the Buckeyes on August 31, 2023 against the Oakland Grizzlies.
Credit: Lily Hynes | Assistant Photo Editor
A breezy and sunny end-of-summer day was the perfect backdrop for Ohio State women’s soccer’s (2-2-1, 0-0-0 Big Ten) second win of the year.
Led by junior forward Kailyn Dudukovich’s two goals, Ohio State previewed a promising season to come by securing a shutout win against the Oakland Grizzlies (1-3-1, 0-0-0 Horizon) 6-0 Thursday at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
Starting sophomore forward Ella Giannola led the Buckeyes with the first goal of the night in the 14th minute with an assist from Dudukovich.
Dudukovich followed her assist closely with two goals of her own in the 24th and 57th minutes, respectively, providing the second and fifth Buckeye goals of the night.
These made for Dudukovich’s fourth and fifth overall goals in five games this year and reinforced her role as the leading scorer on the season.
Sophomore forward Coley Sidloski trailed closely behind freshman forward Amanda Schlueter’s goal in the 37th minute, her first-ever collegiate goal, which rounded the Buckeyes up to a 4-0 advantage on the Grizzlies at the end of the first half.
Although the team leans on the younger side this year, Dudukovich said that’s not an issue for the Buckeyes.
“The freshmen have brought fire to our team, so they’ve added talent,” Dudukovich said. “I try to be a leader and show them the ropes so they can be more comfortable quickly. [Amanda] Schlueter is coming up, and she’s going to be a great goal scorer for the team.”
In a night of firsts, freshman forward Ava Bramblett also cashed in her first goal of the season and closed the Buckeyes out for a 6-0 finish following Dudukovich’s fifth goal at the onset of the second half.
Ohio State head coach Lori Walker-Hock said the team’s dedication after losing two of their leading scorers and eight total players last season has been obvious and was shown on the field.
“We’re very young and we’re just growing and growing every day so it’s just one game at a time. Adversity is going to come, and you never know when or where,” Walker-Hock said. “I do believe in karma and how do you fix that? You just have to work harder and do more and I think we took care of that tonight.”
Dudukovich, who is the Buckeyes’ leader in goals and shots, said the team’s success can be attributed to their mentality and the way they coexist together as a group.
“Keeping that championship mindset that we had [last year] is important,” Dudukovich said “One thing we love to do as a team is loving each other and working for each other, really trying to keep this oneness and toughness. We win as a team, we lose as a team.”
The Buckeyes take the pitch again Thursday at home against the Ohio University Bobcats at 7 p.m.
