The Ohio State field hockey team huddles together during the Ohio State-Wake Forest game Sunday. Wake Forest won 1-0. Credit: Zachary Reilly | Photo Editor
The No. 23 Ohio State field hockey team dropped its third straight game in a 1-0 loss to No. 17 Wake Forest Sunday at Buckeye Varsity Field.
The Buckeyes’ (3-3) three losses have all been close games played against current top-25 teams, this one to the Demon Deacons (5-2) who have now won five straight.
The Demon Deacons sealed the win with a goal from sophomore forward Brooke McCusker with only 12:33 left in the game.
Junior forward Makenna Webster said the Buckeyes aren’t discouraged after the loss.
“We really gave a good fight,” Webster said. “There’s just a few things we need to do better, but I think at the end of the day we’re happy with our performance.”
The Buckeyes faced five corners from the Demon Deacons in the first quarter which they turned into eight shots, but they weren’t able to convert on any of them, in part because of junior goalkeeper Abby Danson’s three saves.
Despite the loss, Danson recorded eight saves in the game tying her season-high mark that she reached Aug. 28 against Albany in a 3-0 win.
Wake Forest had 17 shots and 11 corners in the game compared to Ohio State’s six of each. Ohio State head coach Jarred Martin said he gives the defense a lot of credit for keeping the game scoreless until the fourth quarter.
“Abby made some good saves, especially early on, and our defensive penalty corner group did great,” Martin said. “I think the problem is we’re putting ourselves in positions against great teams like Wake. If you keep giving them chances, they’re eventually going to find one.”
The game remained scoreless until the fourth quarter when McCusker was able to score the only goal of the game for the Demon Deacons, assisted by senior midfielder Nat Friedman.
Webster said she is already looking forward to next weekend when the Buckeyes will try to bounce back on the road against two more top-25 ranked teams in No. 19 Rutgers and No. 6 Penn State.
“Every game we’re getting better, so I’m excited to see how these next games go,” Webster said. “We’re a great team, and we have a really bright future and I think we’re going to do well against the teams coming up.”
The Buckeyes’ next game is in Piscataway, New Jersey, against Rutgers on Friday at 3 p.m.
