Coming off one of its most disappointing losses of the year, the Ohio field hockey squad rebounded with two straight shutouts this weekend to open Mid-American Conference play.
The Bobcats (5-5, 2-0 MAC) dominated Ball State 4-0 Friday and held off Miami on Saturday, 1-0, just days after getting crushed 6-1 at home by Ohio State.
Ohio goalkeeper Jessie Martin took that loss personally and spent long hours studying tape to work out the kinks in her game.
I had a little self-searching
soul-searching with what I did wrong and I wanted to improve on that she said.
Martin returned to form with three saves against each MAC team, but she and the defense made countless big plays to clear the ball away from the goal when they needed it most.
I think something that doesn't show up in the stats is Jessie's ability to stop plays when she comes out of goal and cleans up a play before it can develop
Ohio coach Neil Macmillan said. Unfortunately
it doesn't get recorded as a save.
More importantly, however, was the fact that the Bobcats moved up in the conference standings.
Undefeated in the MAC is key
Macmillan said. It doesn't matter about the overall record. We need to be in the first two (teams) in the MAC so that we get the bye in the tournament.
Friday's win over Ball State was even more memorable for freshman Katelyn Shelley, who came off the bench to score her first collegiate goal.
I was kind of disappointed at the beginning of the game because I missed the first opportunity that I had
Shelley said. I'm hoping for more goals to come
but I'm not usually a scorer.
However, forward Estienne Coetzee is a scorer for the Bobcats, and she recorded a goal in both matches this weekend to tie her for the team lead with four this year.
When the Bobcats and Redhawks played in the first round of the 2005 MAC tournament, scoring was lacking, as it was Saturday. The RedHawks bounced the Bobcats in a heartbreaking 1-0 overtime final.
I don't think that (game) crossed our mind
Macmillan said. Miami is a very good team within our conference
so a win over them is fantastic. We protected our home soil
which is key.
