The No. 13 Ohio Sate field hockey team looks to finish its season strong against No. 20 Northwestern Saturday.
The Buckeyes seek their first Big Ten road win of the season when they travel to Evanston, Ill. The Buckeyes are 0-2 on the road in conference play, having lost to Penn State and Michigan State.
The Buckeyes will face a Wildcat team that has struggled through the Big Ten season, posting a record of 1-4. Past meetings between the conference foes have been dominated by the Buckeyes, who have won the last 21 contests. The Buckeyes have shut out the Wildcats in their past three meetings.
Saturday’s game will be Senior Day for the Wildcats, who are are led by seniors Courtney Plaster-Strange and Elizabeth Dobbs. The duo is second and third in points, respectively.
The Buckeyes need a victory over Northwestern to remain in second place in the Big Ten. A loss would open the door for Indiana to take control of second place in the conference. The Hoosiers travel to Ann Arbor to face Michigan Saturday.
The Big Ten standings are critical as the conference tournament starts Nov. 5. in East Lansing on Michigan State’s campus. Michigan State has already secured the top seed in the conference tournament and the first round bye. The Buckeyes will earn either the second or third seed, depending on the results of Saturday’s games.
The first round of the tournament is Nov. 5, followed by the semifinals on Nov. 6 and the finals Nov. 8.
Last year’s Buckeye squad made a run to the conference championship game before falling to Iowa, 2-1, in overtime.
Since that loss, many players, including seniors Lindsay Quintiliani and Natalia Ciminello, said winning the Big Ten is the team’s number one goal. While Michigan State has already clinched the regular season, the tournament championship is still up for grabs.
If the Buckeyes achieve their goal and win the Big Ten tournament, they will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. If they fall short, they will look to earn an at-large bid.
The NCAA tournament begins Nov. 14, when the Buckeyes will look to achieve another team goal — a trip to the final four.
