KENT - After collecting a pair of emotional one-goal victories, the No. 4 Ohio field hockey team fell short in the Mid-American Conference tournament finals Sunday against No. 2 Louisville, 2-1.
It was Ohio's (9-12) fourth consecutive trip to the conference final, but the Bobcats were denied the title for the second straight year.
We played hard
we played tough said Ohio coach Shelly Morris. We beat them in every sense of the word except the scoreboard.
It did not take Louisville (13-9) long to score in the final. Less than one minute into the contest, midfielder Jessica Javelet scored off a penalty corner.
With less than nine minutes left in the half, the Cardinal offense struck again. Awarded a penalty shot, Louisville's Desire' Miller scored to secure a 2-0 lead.
In the second frame, Ohio put pressure on the Louisville defense, but it was not enough.
We really never gave up Morris said. They left everything they had out there.
At the 18:52 mark Ohio's Liz Holtzman took a Tanja Konijn pass and put it past Louisville's goalie, MAC Player of the Year Christy Hershey, to cut the deficit to one.
The Cardinals buckled down from there and held the 2-1 lead.
We played great today
Morris said. We out-cornered them; we out-shot them. The ball didn't fall for us.
