OSU sophomore Emalee Mongno (28) during a game against Hofstra on March 27 in Hempstead, N.Y. Credit: Courtesy of OSU

The Ohio State women’s lacrosse team gutted out a victory in their first game away from home, boosting their record to 2-0 on the season. The Buckeyes defeated Jacksonville University (0-1) by a score of 13-12 in what was a back-and-forth contest between the two schools.

The Dolphins jumped out to an early 6-1 lead over OSU, dominating the ball for the first 25 minutes of the contest. The last 5:18 of the half, however, turned in favor of the Buckeyes.

The Buckeyes struggled against the zone defense and fast paced offense that the Dolphins implemented throughout the first half. But after a breadth of sloppy play early on, OSU was able to salvage the first half with three quick scores, two of which came from sophomore midfielder Baley Parrott, narrowing Jacksonville’s lead to just two.

After the break, Parrott was just as hot, scoring within the first four minutes of the second half — giving her three goals on the day. Jacksonville was able to respond with a goal of their own — junior midfielder MacEllen McDonough quickly extended their lead back to two.

The Buckeyes sophomore midfielder Mackenzie Maring converted on a free position goal and Big Ten Freshman of the Week, Liza Hernandez, added her first goal of the day, tying the game at 7-7.

In this game of runs, Jacksonville would score two consecutive goals extending their lead back to two once again. This lead wouldn’t last for long with OSU scoring four unanswered goals giving them their first lead of the day, 11-9.

With 9:15 remaining in the game, the Dolphins would fight back, netting back-to-back goals and tying the game once again. Jacksonville took advantage of the Buckeyes being out of position in the game yet again and would, just a few minutes later, retake the lead off of a goal from senior attacker Danielle Della Rocca that narrowly slid between the stick and foot of goalie Rizzo. Della Rocca had three goals on the day, helping her team stay in the game.

Hernandez did her best to make a strong case as to why she should repeat as Big Ten Freshman of the week. She found the back of the net on an incredible over the head shot, tying the game at 12, with what was her third of the day,

When the game clock showed 3:33 junior attacker Molly Wood, and number 33, couldn’t have picked a better time to score her first goal of the contest, giving OSU the 13-12 lead and eventual win after a Dolphin shot collided with the post and bounced out with just seconds left on the clock.

On a day when the Buckeyes struggled at times, freshman goalie Jillian Rizzo’s skill in the net shined brightly. She had 16 saves and was able to keep her team in the fight when it looked like the game was getting out of their hands.

OSU will return home from Florida for a three game home stand, the first of which is next Sunday at 2 p.m. against Cincinnati.