No. 11 Virginia Remains Undefeated After a 2-1 Win Against No 14 Ohio State

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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 11 Virginia field hockey team (4-0, 0-0 ACC) handed No. 14 Ohio State (3-1, 0-0 Big Ten) its first loss of the season, downing the Buckeyes 2-1 on Sunday (Sept. 8) at Turf Field.
 
Freshman midfielder Laura Janssen (Nijmegen, Netherlands) scored a pair of goals in the fourth quarter to lift the Cavaliers to the comeback victory.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Ohio State had a prime scoring opportunity right before halftime after being awarded two penalty corners in the final thirty seconds of the period. After the second corner, the Buckeyes earned a penalty stroke with four seconds left on the clock. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Hausheer (West Windsor, N.J.) saved the attempt from Alsina Clotet to preserve the 0-0 score. Ohio State broke the deadlock 4:09 into the third period when Clotet scored after a penalty corner. Janssen tied the game on a third-chance shot 2:47 into the fourth quarter. Junior striker Makayla Gallen (Glen Mills, Pa.) and sophomore midfielder Greer Gill (Virginia Beach, Va.) had each taken a shot that was saved by Aaliyah Hernandez before Gill set up Janssen’s on-target attempt. Janssen scored the game-winner with 2:52 remaining, knocking in a midair ball. Ohio State pulled its goalie after Janssen’s second goal, which proved to be a gamble when the Cavaliers were awarded a penalty corner with just over a minute left to play, but the Buckeye defense blocked UVA’s shot to keep it a one-goal game.
 
 
FROM HEAD COACH MICHELE MADISON
“That was a barnburner. Ohio State is a very good team. The ACC and Big Ten are the premier conferences and any win against the Big Ten team is a big win. Our team said that they had to win the battles to win the war, and they really did that. They brought it, especially in the fourth quarter. I thought that when we controlled the small passing game, we were able to control possession and really change the tempo of the game. In the fourth quarter, we were possessing the ball, building it up, and really pressing their backfield to try to get them to cough up the ball. And they did.  Lauren (Hausheer) had a monster save on the stroke before halftime. She read it well, jumped to the spot and got her bodyweight behind it. That energized the team and really gave us hope going into the second half.”
 

NOTES

• The Cavaliers took 31 shots in the game, the most shots they have taken since taking 38 against Fairfield in 2017. They had 18 shots on goal
• Ohio State took 11 shots
• There were a combined 21 penalty corners in the game (UVA with 12, OSU with 6)
• Lauren Hausheer had a career-high six saves
• Ohio State’s Aaliyah Hernandez made 15 saves, including seven in the second period and six in the fourth
• Laura Janssen’s goals were the first of her career
• This was the third multi-goal performance by a Cavalier in the first four games of the season
• This was Virginia’s second win over a ranked opponent after topping No. 9 Penn State, 2-1, opening weekend. It is also the second win over a Big Ten team

 
UP NEXT

• The Cavaliers travel to face a third Big Ten opponent, No. 2 Maryland, on Friday, Sept. 13 before returning home to host Yale on Sunday, Sept. 15 at 2 p.m.
• Admission is free for all home games