Women’s soccer schedule is headlined by matchups against Purdue, the return of the Battle of the Bell and another trip to Lexington to take on the highly-lauded Kentucky Wildcats.
The women’s soccer team announced its schedule for the 2015 season Thursday morning.
The schedule is headlined by matchups against Big Ten Conference member Purdue, a trip to coach Aaron Rodgers’ former team Kentucky and a renewal of the “Battle of the Bell” rivalry when the Bobcats take on Marshall in Huntington, West Virginia.
Other notable games include an exhibition match against Valparaiso, who went 14-2-4 last season before losing to Notre Dame in the NCAA Tournament and the Mid-American Conference opener at Buffalo on Sept. 25.
Of the seven non-conference games Ohio will play, the most intriguing will be its game at Kentucky, where Rodgers went 42-30-5 as an assistant coach in his four years there.
Last season’s trip to Lexington saw the Bobcats lose 3-0 — though it could have easily been blamed on the dreary, rainy afternoon. The Wildcats could be one of the hardest challenges the Bobcats will face prior to their MAC schedule, with perhaps only games against in-state rival Cleveland State and local rival Marshall comparing to the challenge that Kentucky will provide.
Outside of those games, the non-conference schedule appears to hold easier tasks with Ohio facing teams like Robert Morris and Xavier, who combined for just seven wins last year.
In terms of MAC play, the Bobcats play five of their 11 conference games at the newly-refurbished Chessa Field. Ohio will play Northern Illinois, Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Bowling Green and Central Michigan at home.
Away from Chessa Field, some of the more interesting fixtures include a game at Miami on Oct. 9 and the MAC-season opener against Buffalo — who won the MAC and played Penn State in the NCAA Tournament in 2014.
After graduating eight seniors last year and bringing in nine recruits, Rodgers will hope to improve on the 6-13 record that Ohio had last season.
And with returning standout players like Grace Campbell, Carly Manso and Alexis Milesky, Rodgers has a good chance of improving his ninth place finish in the MAC last year.
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