Ohio is participating in the Chicago Showcase this weekend; Saturday, the team took on Arizona State for its second game of the weekend. Against Arizona State, Ohio came away with a 3-2 victory, its second in as many games.
A slow start in the early stages of the game ended when Noah Holt was left lying on the ice with a leg injury. He skated off the rink and didn’t play the rest of the second period. Shortly after, Arizona State scored the first goal of the game.
Without Holt, who is the number two scorer on the roster behind Luc Reeve, the team picked up its energy to compensate for the loss. With only 4:43 left in the second period, sophomore Laker Aldridge scored to tie it up at 1-1.
With 38 seconds left in the second period, Aldridge scored again, making it 2-1.
To start the third, sophomore Hollander Thompson scored only a few minutes into the period. Later, Arizona scored to tighten the Ohio lead; however, the team was able to maintain its slim lead until the end of the 20 minutes.
The Bobcats have struggled to start fast and with energy in the opening period all season long. Head Coach Lionel Mauron recognizes the inconsistency of goals in the first period this season.
“Goal scoring in general, it’s been a little bit of an issue," Mauron said. "I think that we have started getting a little small. That’s something we want to fix because we’re going to be way behind and we’ll never get in the game.”
In regards to Ohio’s game on Sunday against Minot State University, Mauron is anticipating to see how the face-off goes.
“I’m very excited. I think we have a little bit of momentum going,” said Mauron. “ It will be a very tough test so I’m excited to see how we stack up.”
