Ohio (4-9-5, 2-5-4, Mid-American Conference) hosted the Miami RedHawks (9-5-2, 6-2-2, MAC) for the highly anticipated Battle of the Bricks resulting in a 3-0 victory for the RedHawks.
The Bobcats fought until the end in a physical matchup against the RedHawks where they outshot them 9-5 in the team’s final home game. The team started off hot in Redhawk territory with a shot from senior Maia Kaufman in the second minute that was saved by the keeper. Senior Rayann Pruss responded in the 18th with a bottom center shot that flew into the hands of the keeper.
“It’s hard to find a group that’s never grumpy about playing time or being on the bench, and I enjoyed coaching these seniors who passed down those traits,” Ohio head coach Aaron Rodgers said. “They’ve set such a good foundation for the group, and I’m kind of gutted that we kind of ended this way not making the MAC tournament for all they gave to this program.”
Senior Celeste Sloma made an incredible diving save in the 28th minute to keep the game scoreless. Two minutes later, the RedHawks responded with some nifty passing that gave them their first goal of the game. Ohio wouldn’t go away as senior Scout Murray and graduate student Quintin Tostevin placed two shots before half just missing the mark.
“They’ve all grown a ton and matured as humans and players,” Rodgers said. “It’s so easy to be proud of who they’ve developed into as most of them have jobs lined up for when they graduate.”
The RedHawks added to their lead with their second goal in the 57th minute and a third off a penalty kick in the 74th. Senior Hailey Jeng continued to muscle through the RedHawks defense with three shots that nearly missed the mark.
“Congratulations to Miami we knew exactly what we were facing, and we knew it was critical to match their intensity and physicality,” Rodgers said. “We had to be a little quicker and pick up on second balls and we held them to only four shots and they executed.”
This season has meant something to every single senior on the team, and Rodgers wanted to make sure every single one knew the value they brought to the team the last time they stepped off the field at home.
“Just that we love them and we will miss them,” Rodgers said in his final message to the seniors.
Even though this season may not have gone the way the team hoped, the seniors were a big piece to making it what it has been the past couple of seasons through heart and hard work, the backbone of any strong program.
“I just think it goes back to the people they are, and the mindset they kind of lived out since 2021,” Rodgers said.
This group of seniors have put together strong years for this program and will look to leave their mark on the field one last time. The Bobcats will look to end the season on a high note as they travel to Amherst, Massachusetts to face UMass Sunday at noon.
“We have one game left at UMass, and it will be a new opponent, a new venue and an awesome opportunity for us to go and give it one last shot together,” Rodgers said.
