No matter what happened in front of her this season, Ohio goalie Jen McGill kept the Bobcats in every game they played with her exceptional goaltending skills.
That notion held true last weekend in the first round of the NCAA tournament, which saw No. 20 Ohio fall to No. 1 North Carolina, 4-0.
“I don’t really think the score reflected the game itself,” McGill said. “I think that’s the best we’ve played all season.”
The game was scoreless after the half thanks in large part to McGill, whose three saves prevented the Tar Heels from grabbing a lead. Ohio’s goaltender said she could see the home team’s surprise and frustration at being involved in such a tight contest.
But the second half brought a new level of intensity from North Carolina. The tournament’s top seed unleashed 10 shots on net, and McGill was able to stop only six of them.
“I knew I was going to get a lot of pressure,” McGill said. “They just know how to score and they know how to put pressure on you. They have great skills.”
Despite the loss, coach Neil Macmillan expressed nothing but pride after the game ended. He said he was extremely pleased with Ohio’s effort — especially what he saw in the first half.
But Macmillan said he was aware that the better team is moving on in the tournament. North Carolina outshot Ohio 19-4 and received seven more penalty corners than did the visiting Bobcats.
Brooke Edwards, Jessica Jue, Marissa Higgins and Kristine Gegas were the four players to record shots for Ohio. None of their attempts resulted in a shot on goal, and all of them came in the second half as time was winding down.
“It was a great game, a great performance by all of us I thought,” Macmillan said. “I’m really, really proud of the team. I thought they did a really good job of representing Ohio.”
The loss to North Carolina marks the end of the 2011 season for Macmillan’s squad, whose 19 wins tied a Mid-American Conference record.
The Bobcats went 11-1 against fellow MAC schools this season en route to winning their fourth conference championship in six years.
In addition to what the team accomplished, there were also plenty of individual accolades to go around as well.
When the conference released its Player of the Year award, it was no surprise that Louzeth Schutte was the recipient.
The senior, who will soon graduate, was named the MAC Player of the Week four times: once for her offensive production and three times for her defensive performance.
Cathryn Altdoerffer, Taylor Brown, Laura Mastro, Jue and McGill also won Player of the Week awards. Brown led Ohio with 15 goals, and Jue broke the team’s single-season record for assists. She finished with 18 on the year.
Both McGill and Macmillan said the team’s chemistry was something that allowed Ohio to enjoy so much success this year. By avoiding internal issues, the Bobcats were able to focus on the game at hand.
“Everything went the way it was supposed to go,” McGill said. “It was a great season. It was a fun season.”
me811508@ohiou.edu
