The Ohio soccer team moved up in the Mid-American Conference standings this weekend with two key wins against Miami and Ball State.
Ohio forward Christel Schiering scored three goals in less than four minutes Sunday to put the Bobcats (6-9-1 overall, 4-5-1 MAC) up for good in a 4-1 win against Ball State (8-6-2, 6-4-1 MAC).
The game was scoreless at halftime, but forward Tiffany Horvath's goal in the fourth minute of the second half got the Ohio offense rolling. The Cardinals defense held up for another 30 minutes but crumbled after Schiering scored to put the Bobcats up 2-0. Horvath said the constant pressure Ohio put on Ball State shows that the Bobcats are indeed still a contender in the MAC.
As soon as we scored a bunch
they started breaking down she said. Scoring first is a big thing for us and we're going to look to do that more in the first half. It just shows what we're capable of because Ball State is the third team in the league right now.
Ohio's burst of offense against Ball State, who had given up just 13 goals in 15 games, was due in large part to a switch in playing formation that gave the Bobcats more scoring chances.
We changed things up a little bit with how we're playing
said coach Stacy Strauss. I think it's confused some other teams but also created more opportunities for us.
The change also worked on Friday, in dramatic fashion. Ohio fought Miami (5-8-2, 4-5-1 MAC) through 100 minutes of scoreless play before moving to the 4-3-3 formation in the second overtime period.
Midfielder Carolyn Valade, normally a stopper in the backfield, shifted forward to take Jennifer Wright's pass on the right side and shot it past Miami goalkeeper Megan Ortner for the 1-0 win.
Strauss said Friday that Valade's game winner shot new life into the Bobcats.
I told the girls at the end that I think we've taken winning for granted for a couple years. You forget how good it should feel
she said. It's extremely poetic when you have a team leader who normally doesn't get many opportunities like that to be able to do what everyone else has and finish and put it away to end the game.
Several players contributed key performances for the Bobcats. Wright, Horvath, Gina Siedentopf, Lindsey Vondrell and Kendra Hornschemeier all had assists, and goalkeeper Melissa Parra recorded 13 saves between the two games. The only goal she allowed came with less than three minutes remaining Sunday, after the Bobcats had put the game away.
Schiering said the Bobcats are playing better as a team.
We had some awesome performances
she said. Lindsey Vondrell played really well. (Kelly) Prandi did good in the center of the field for us. I think we're finally coming together. We have a little more work to do
but we're doing good.
The two wins put Ohio in better position to qualify for the MAC Tournament. With 13 points, the Bobcats are in the middle of a pack of teams vying for the eight tourney spots. Just five points separate fourth from tenth.
Ohio will play its final two conference games next weekend at home. The Bobcats play host to Bowling Green at 4 p.m. Friday and Toledo at 1 p.m. Sunday. Both games are at Chessa Field.
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Joe Rominiecki
