Ohio State entered Friday’s game against the Maryland field hockey team in last place of the Big Ten and searching for their first conference win. The Terps entered Friday’s game tied for first place in the conference and ranked sixth in the country.
Yet after playing 70 minutes, the teams were tied. Maryland needed overtime to put away the Buckeyes, and Linnea Gonzales’ goal in the seventh minute of the added period earned the Terps their fourth consecutive win.
Maryland outshot Ohio State 19-11 in regulation and earned eight corners to the Buckeyes’ five. Ohio State, though, forced overtime and had a chance to score the golden goal a few minutes before Gonzales ended the game.
The Buckeyes earned a corner in the 73rd minute and put a shot on goal, but goalkeeper Sarah Bates made a stop to keep the game alive. Ohio State had another chance on the rebound, but that second shot went wide.
Four minutes later, the Terps had a penalty corner of their own. Defender Grace Balsdon sent a cross toward Gonzales, who buried a shot into the upper right of the cage to clinch a 2-1 victory.
Balsdon assisted on both of the team’s penalty corner goals.
Carrie Hanks put the Terps on the board in the 27th minute, opening scoring after the Terps dominated play to begin the match.
Her score was the team’s eighth shot of the game, and it had allowed the Buckeyes to take just three. It was the team’s third penalty corner, while the Buckeyes had earned just one.
The team took the 1-0 lead to halftime, but the Buckeyes responded quickly after the break. Ohio State forward Irene Fritschy netted a fast break chance less than two minutes into the second half, tying the game at 1-1.
That score would last until the end of the second half as the Buckeyes kept the game — and the stat sheet — even. They were outshot 11-4 in the first period but narrowed that deficit to just 8-7 in the second, and matched the Terps with four corners.
Two of Ohio State’s corner chances came in the final five minutes, but both of their shots were blocked and the game went to overtime. Then, after Bates stopped Fritschy’s shot off the overtime corner, she couldn’t put the rebound on target.
Gonzales took advantage a few minutes later and the Terps escaped Columbus with a tight, overtime win.
