Ohio won its first home match Sunday against Eastern Kentucky
Alexis Milesky believes Ohio has finally hit its breakthrough, after defeating Eastern Kentucky to pick up its first home win of the season.
The sophomore forward snuck behind the Colonels' backline and collectively guided the ball into the net in the 54th minute to give Ohio its first goal in Sunday’s 2-0 win.
“I felt like once we got one, the chances were just going to keep coming,” Milesky said. “After that, we kept getting more and more opportunities and we need to focus so we can put them away.”
The attacking style that coach Aaron Rodgers promised, was delivered throughout the weekend as his side was able to keep possession and create chances in Friday and Sunday’s matches.
But the second-year coach still felt the missed opportunities needed to be converted, and said the team would work on finishing in practice, providing Ohio’s 23 shots to only two goals as justification.
“We showed that we can attack and we showed that we can get the ball forward,” Rodgers said. “We just have to have the composure in front of goal and the ability to finish those chances off.”
Rodgers also gave credit to his defense, which a handful of times looked flimsy but didn’t break, as the Bobcats were able to record their second shutout this season.
Both unforced defensive breakdowns and blown chances in the final third were the difference on Friday, when Ohio fell •3-2 to Xavier in double overtime, which left Rodgers so frustrated at one point that he pushed over his chair.
On Sunday, he joked and said that wouldn’t be necessary.
“First and foremost, we got a shutout, and that’s fantastic,” Rodgers said. “But overall a clean sheet and a win is exactly what we needed.”
All told, the team can walk away from this weekend with a much different sense of chemistry than before.
The Ohio side of last weekend and Friday night appeared to be one frustrated and ready for a bit of luck. Sunday’s squad left Chessa with smiling, with high hopes and optimistic as it slowly inches closer to Mid-American Conference play.
“Getting that win was the most important thing,” Rodgers said. “I think we can take a breath and can just get ready for Detroit next Friday.”
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