Ohio continued its winning ways on Sunday, defeating Davidson 1-0 at Pruitt Field.
Although the final score would beg to differ, the match was action packed. Ohio once again found itself evenly matched, much like it did against California on Aug. 28.
The Wildcats dominated the first quarter, limiting the Bobcats to zero shots on goal in the first 15 minutes of play. However, like many instances earlier this season, Ohio head coach Ali Johnstone was able to rally her team coming out of the break.
Despite Davidson owning the first quarter, Ohio took control of the second. Its three penalty corners did not result in any scoring, but Katelyn Whittle had a shot that went just above the net. That shot epitomized the quarter for Ohio: close but not quite able to seal the deal.
Towards the middle of the second quarter, Ohio appeared to take its foot off the gas. This lapse of sorts gave Davidson the chance to break the scoreless tie, but the shot was whisked away by Ohio goalkeeper Nele Graner.
The graduate student from Germany has been excellent in the net all season, but notched her first shutout of the year on Sunday. One thing that Graner excelled at against Davison was stopping its shot coming off the baseline.
“Nele had an amazing game today," Johnstone said. "She kept picking off that pass on the baseline ... Nele loves that (shot). ”
In the third quarter, freshman Mijintje Ligtenberg scored the lone goal of the match. The goal was a screamer that knocked off the pads of Davidson goalkeeper Genna Barge.
Sunday marked Ligtenberg’s third straight match with a goal. Johnstone is proud of what she’s seen from Ligtenberg so far this season.
“She fits right in,” Johnstone said. “When she has that ball, it’s like glued to her stick. She’s really handy.”
Even though no goals were scored past the 36th minute, the end of the match still was exciting. Both teams put up close shots but were unsuccessful in adding to their scores.
Late in the game, Bodhi Littlefield sent a pass in front of the net that was ushered away like a fan running across the field at the Super Bowl. Shortly thereafter, Katelyn Whittle delivered a perfect ball in front of the net, but the pass was never received as there was no one in position to take the shot.
To conclude the action, Davidson attempted one last push at the net with 15 seconds left. Its shot was knocked away by Graner to end the match.
Ohio will look to continue its winning streak next Sunday on the road against Towson.
