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Field Hockey's weekend falls short to OSU and IU

Ryan Terhune - The Miami Student
Ryan Terhune - The Miami Student

Indiana University played host to the Miami field hockey team on Sunday which ended in a second consecutive 3-2 loss for the RedHawks. MU falls to 2-4 overall (0-0 Mid-American Conference) after the weekend, also losing 3-2 to Ohio State University on Friday.

"It was a good game of hockey," head coach Inako Puzo said about the Indiana game. "We played very well and competed hard. We can't let the scoreboard fool us. It wasn't the result we wanted, but it showed a lot of good things and we can keep working forward together."

The Redhawks were outshot 13-11 but tied the Hoosiers with eight penalty corners.

Sophomore back Kirsten McNeil scored first for the RedHawks in the 17th minute. IU tied it up in the 33rd minute with a goal from senior forward Maddie Latino.

Freshman forward Allie Grace Joyner put MU up 2-1 in the 55th minute with a goal off a rebound, marking her second goal of the season. IU responded in the 59th minute with another goal by Latino who would go on to finish with a hat trick by scoring off a rebound in overtime -- securing the win for the Hoosiers.

Miami freshman midfielder Leonor Berlie finished with a game-high six shots while junior goalkeeper Maddie Passarella had five saves.

Miami field hockey hosted Ohio State University on Friday, but lost to the Buckeyes in an exciting 3-2 match. The 'Hawks' comeback fell just short in the final minutes. MU is still winless at home (0-3).

"We have to work harder and that's the bottom line, especially in the second half," Puzo said. "Ohio State changed gears and were putting much more pressure on the ball than the first half. That was our goal -- to put more pressure when we're on defense and to attack and speed up the game."

OSU outshot MU 19-6 and while the shot outlook is lopsided in favor of the Buckeyes, MU was dominant for the majority of the first half and toward the end of the second. It was that time in between that ultimately beat the RedHawks.

"Ohio State came here today and played to win the game. We just did that for a few minutes of the game," Puzo said. "That's unacceptable, especially when you're playing at home. The image we gave today was not the image I was expecting from Miami, that we were all expecting from Miami."

Miami's senior forward Henni Otten started the scoring with an unassisted goal at 16:16 which Miami held onto for ten minutes before OSU scored with 8:02 left in the first half, tying the game 1-1. This OSU goal was a turning point in the game for MU -- the shift in momentum helped OSU score one more with 1:23 left in the first half to go up 2-1 at halftime.

Miami played defensively and failed to capitalize on their scoring opportunities after the momentum swing toward the end of the first half, and this transition held for the majority of the second half as well.

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OSU would score again with 15:45 left in the second half, putting the Buckeyes up 3-1.

About five minutes later, coach Puzo called a timeout to bolster some last-minute motivation into the team. It appeared to have worked because MU took control again and forced play into their attacking 25 until they notched another goal with 2:19 left.

Passarella was pulled following Miami's goal to give them a player advantage for the time left.

"It doesn't matter if you lose 3-1 or 3-2 or whatever. You lose or you win, that's it. So we decided to go for it," Puzo said. "With two minutes left to go on the clock and you have the ball, you got to give yourself the opportunity to tie the game and take the game to overtime. That was the goal."

Miami opens up conference play this Friday at Ohio University at 3 p.m. followed by a game at Appalachian State on Sunday September 17 at noon. OU is 1-5 (0-0 MAC) while Appalachian State is 2-4 on the season.