The Bobcats were back in action Friday with a 2-0 win over the Chippewas in a beautiful fall afternoon matchup at Pruitt Field in Athens, Ohio.
The match got off to a slow start, as Ohio and Central Michigan stood at a stalemate in the first quarter. Ohio had two shots on goal while Central Michigan ended of the first quarter without a single one.
The competition began to heat up in the second quarter, as Ohio had four penalty corner opportunities to try to find the back of the net, but Central Michigan keeper Maja Halasz held down the defense with four saves to prevent Ohio from scoring.
The Bobcats continued to flood the attacking circle in the third quarter, and a goal was finally scored by Noa Desmaretz. The goal is Desmaretz‘s second of the season.
“It was a big change, but also I got it since it was easy to help the forwards because I’ve been in that position, and it was fun to like change it up,“ Desmaretz said.
The Bobcats were dominating on offense going into the final quarter of the match with 12 shots, 10 being on goal. Central Michigan, however, struggled, only putting one shot on goal in the first three quarters.
In the fourth quarter, Ohio’s stars stepped up to finish off the match. Mijntje Ligtenberg and Katelyn Whittle each put pressure on the Central Michigan goal in the fourth quarter, and Whittle eventually found the net with an assist from Ligtenberg to put Ohio up 2-0.
The Bobcats sealed a victory, finally ending their five-match losing streak with the win over the Chippewas. It was a dominant display all the way through for the Bobcats, who outshot the Chippewas 18-5, while also recording four penalty corners to just one for the Chippewas.
“This team is hungry and we’re ready to fight for the rest of the season,“ head coach Ali Johnstone said.
