A shorthanded Buckeye squad hit the ice this evening to take on WCHA rival Minnesota-Duluth. The Bucks managed to gain an early advantage. However they couldn’t quite make it stick.
| scoring by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota-Duluth | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Ohio State | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Ohio State drew first blood in the contest. For several shifts the team put pressure on the UMD net, never allowing the puck to leave the zone. Eventually such determined efforts paid off.
Freshman Lauren Boyle let a shot go from the point. It sailed through a mess of traffic to the front of the net where it was tipped in by Melani Moylan. The goal was the forward’s first of the 2015-16 campaign.
Though the Bucks continued to look good in the offensive zone, they weren’t as strong in their own end. Sophomore goalie Alex LaMere seemed to have trouble settling in. She wasn’t ready to pick up the slack from a loose Scarlet and Gray defense. When the Buckeyes turned the puck over to Duluth captain Ashleigh Brykaliuk midway through the period, it wound up in the back of the net.
| pd | time | buckeye goal scorers (assists) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2:58 | Melani Moylan (Lauren Boyle, Kendall Curtis) |
| 1 | 18:55 | PP - Lauren Spring (Lauren Boyle, Alexa Ranahan) |
However OSU regrouped and regained the upper hand. Late in the frame the Bucks got their first stab at a power play. They went to work and manufactured a second goal eerily similar to their first.
Boyle put another point shot on net. Bulldog goaltender Madison Rooney made the save but was pulled out of position by the stop. OSU sophomore Lauren Spring was perfectly placed to tap home the rebound.
Minnesota-Duluth came out of the intermission break with a renewed purpose. The Bulldogs’ ramped up energy proved too much for the Buckeyes. Catherine Daoust completed a snappy set of passes to beat LaMere and tie the score at 2-2.
The teams headed to the final period on even footing. They remained that way for nearly eight minutes. Then Duluth’s Sidney Morin broke the deadlock. Three goals were sufficient support for Rooney who locked down the UMD net and secured victory for the Bulldogs. Brykaliuk chipped in an empty net tally.
While the Buckeyes initially looked to be skating equally (if not particularly sharply) with UMD the home team seemed to run out of steam as the game progressed. This is not overly surprising given that OSU continues to be short staffed. The Buckeyes dressed just fifteen skaters for tonight’s contest. Still, you’d like to see the squad hang on to its hard won lead.
Ohio State has another go at Minnesota-Duluth tomorrow afternoon. The teams are scheduled for a 4pm start. If you can't get out to the Ice Rink, an online stream of the game is available with a Buckeye Vision subscription.
