Ohio (4-4 overall, 2-1 Mid-American Conference) had a stellar performance at home against Longwood (2-9 overall, 0-3 Mid-American Conference). The Bobcats’ defense was suffocating all game, allowing the offense to cash in on many scoring opportunities.
Entering Friday’s matchup, both squads were looking to bounce back from losses in their previous games. Ohio returned home after a tough loss to No. 12 Ohio State in Columbus. As for Longwood, a 7-1 defeat at the hands of No. 7 Liberty had the Lancers needing a spark if they wanted to turn the season around.
The opening quarter was a tale of what was to come for both teams. Longwood struggled to gain any sense of a push on the Ohio defense, being backed up near its own goal for the majority of its possessions. The offense from Ohio picked up along with its defense as freshman forward Johanna Hildebrandt was able to score her first goal of the season with 5:15 on the clock in the first quarter to give Ohio a 1-0 lead.
Longwood’s offensive struggles continued into the second quarter as the Bobcats’ suffocating defensive pressure limited the Lancers to just one shot on offense for the entire half. Ohio’s offense was able to earn the game’s first penalty and managed to put up six shots in the second quarter. However, the Lancers’ defense held strong throughout the second quarter, not allowing Ohio to stretch its lead going into halftime.
Coming out of halftime, the game looked to be following the same trends with Ohio continuing its stifling defensive intensity, but being unable to convert on its scoring chances. That was until about halfway through the period, as Ohio stretched its lead to two following a goal from Back Bodhi Littlefield as her shot worked its way through traffic to find the back of the net. The Bobcat offense began to steamroll following the goal from Littlefield as two goals within 30 seconds of each other from Pauline Hartlieb and Katelyn Whittle blew the game open in the closing minutes of the quarter.
The fourth quarter was just as dominant as the third was for the Bobcats. After the defense held Longwood scoreless following three Lancer penalty corners, Emily Bietzel became the next freshman to score for Ohio for the day as her goal midway through the fourth gave Ohio a 5-0 lead. The game’s closing minutes saw Noa Desmaretz and Mary Huffman add two more goals, ending the game with a 7-0 win.
Seven different players scored for Ohio on the day, showing off the team’s versatility. The defensive side of the ball was instrumental for the Bobcats victory.
“I think all of our offensive presence comes from the defense and that communication from the defense allows us to put more pressure on them and press them really hard,” Whittle said. “I got to give a shoutout to our defense.” Whittle and her teammates will be looking to apply the same defensive pressure against Miami next Friday in Athens.
X: CharlieFadel
Email: cf111322@ohio.edu
