What a game. Literally everything that could have possibly happened that was out of the ordinary appeared in this game. Ohio State got goals from places it hadn't all season, the goalie was almost a nonfactor, the faceoff group was solid, and the Man Up unit played no part in the narrowest of victories. And yet, despite all of that, the Ohio State Buckeyes WON. Today, that's all that matters.
The first quarter was absolutely horrible for Ohio State. It has been a running theme this season, but the opening 15 just did not go right in any facet. Ohio State lost just about every draw. The Maize and Blue scored three straight goals. And Ohio State couldn't get anything past Hunter Taylor. At first.
Alex Marinier finally stopped the bleeding with a hands free shot that somehow got through. Another Wolverine tally set the bar at 4-1, a deficit that isn't foreign to Ohio State, but certainly isn't great. After struggling mightily in the first quarter, Ohio State went to work on offense. Three straight goals tied the game at 4, one a pole goal from Cullen Brown, then goals from Jake Struck and Liam White evened the score. A goal with 3 minutes left gave the Wolverines the slimmest of margins heading into the break.
After halftime, the teams traded fruitless offensive possessions before Ohio State tied it up on Logan Soelberg's opening salvo of this rivalry. Adam Udell gave the Maize and Blue its final lead, only for Soelberg to tie it back up a short time later. Jackson Birtwistle scored Ohio State's 7th goal of the day, setting up a dramatic finish.
Two more Udell goals bookended Logan Soelberg's final goal in his hat trick, settling things at 8-8 with 3:45 to play. Neither team could find the mark, despite opportunities. Ohio State turned over the Wolverines, and then called timeout with 19.3 seconds left in the game. Garrett Haas, maligned all season for being careless and inefficient, decided it was his time. With under 10 to play, he took his man on all alone, and threw in a goal with essentially zero angle to secure the win with 3 seconds left.
Ohio State was wasteful and inefficient on offense. It was absolutely smothering on defense. And by virtue of taking 33% more shots than their rivals, the Buckeyes managed to get the biggest win of the year. They'll likely need to get two wins in the Big Ten Tournament to have a prayer of an at large, depending on other results. But they still have a chance. And another victory over the hated Wolverines. Play Carmen Ohio, it's a great freaking day.
Enjoy the win, and the weekend!
Go BUCKEYES!!!
