Members of the Ohio State women’s soccer team sing “Carmen Ohio” after the game against Iowa on Sept. 27. Ohio State won 2-0. Credit: Casey Cascaldo | Lantern File Photo
Ohio State looks to win its third game of the season against the Fighting Illini at Demirjian Park in Champaign, Illinois, Sunday. The matchup is the last game in a two-game road trip for the Buckeyes.
The Buckeyes (2-1-3) drew with the Purdue Boilermakers Thursday for their third tie of the season. Junior forward Kayla Fischer scored the lone goal for Ohio State, yet she and sophomore forward Emma Sears combined for five shots on goal in overtime alone.
“Obviously a tie isn’t what we wanted, but I’m proud of how we fought back in the last game to kind of dig ourselves out of the hole,” senior defender Izzy Rodriguez said. “Going forward, I think they can be a motivation not to have that same feeling again and come up with a couple wins.”
Illinois (4-2-1) currently holds a two-game win streak, recently defeating Indiana and Nebraska. Senior goalkeeper Sami Sample was named the Big Ten Goalie of the Week March 16, as she recorded her second consecutive shutout and fourth of the season against Indiana.
Sample’s efforts in goal have led the Illini to a conference best 0.57 goals allowed per game.
“Illinois is a super great team, it’s always been a fun match between the two of us,” Rodriguez said. “I think overall, their formation is going to be something we’re going to have to adapt into, we don’t really know what they’re going to come out with but they have some really great midfielders so we’re going to find a way to combat against that.”
Redshirt sophomore Kendra Pasquale, junior forward Makena Silber and senior midfielder Maggie Hillman all scored in the Illini’s win over Nebraska. The Ohio State defense allowed 15 shots in the Purdue game and will need to be effective in stopping Illinois’ attack.
“I think we need to be confident with our skills because we were a little timid coming out at Purdue and so if we play like we know how to play and attack no matter how they defend us, we’ll be in good shape for Illinois,” Fischer said.
Four players have scored for the Buckeyes this season: Fischer, Sears, freshman midfielder Kine Flotre and freshman forward Peyton McNamara. The freshman class has been a vital part of Ohio State’s game, as six of them haven seen the field this year.
“We have a lot of players scoring a lot of goals so I think we’re just going to have to use that variety tomorrow and try and find space in the wide areas and what we can exploit,” Rodriguez said.
The game kicks off Sunday at 2 p.m. in Champaign and will be broadcasted on BTN+.
