Wake Forest University
(5-2)
Ohio State
(3-3)
No. 17 Wake Forest Defeats No. 23 Ohio State for Fifth-Straight Win
9/18/2022 3:41:00 PM | Field Hockey
The Deacs have won five-straight matches for the first time since 2015, outscoring opponents 23-5 throughout that stretch.
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The No. 17 Wake Forest field hockey team defeated No. 23 Ohio State, 1-0, at the Buckeye Varsity Field Sunday afternoon, marking the program's first five-match win streak since the 2015 season.
Over the course of Wake Forest's (5-2) win-streak, the Deacs have outscored opponents 23-5. Additionally, Wake Forest has scored 13 of its 23 goals in the first half in those victories while holding opponents to one goal or less in four matches and shutting out two non-conference foes.
Following a scoreless opening 45 minutes of play that saw Wake Forest hold advantages in shots (12-4), shots on goal (6-1) and penalty corners (7-4), Brooke McCusker came up clutch. The sophomore found the back of the net two minutes into the fourth quarter to break the scoreless tie and ultimately secure the road victory.
The game-winning score marked McCusker's first goal of the 2022 campaign while Nat Friedman dished out her first assist of the season on the play.
Ellie Todd made her sixth-straight start in goal for Wake Forest, tallying 60 minutes of game action. The freshman made two saves on Ohio State's pair of shots on goal for the Deacs' second shutout of the season.
Overall, Wake Forest outshot Ohio State 17-6 on Sunday and the Demon Deacons offensive attack led to 11 penalty corners, the fifth-straight match with double-digit corner opportunities.
The Deacs have now defeated the Buckeyes four times in the teams' last five matchups, outscoring them 12-7.
How It Happened
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After back-and-forth play in the opening minutes, the Deacs took the match's first penalty corner at the four-minute mark. The ensuing shot attempt by Hannah Maxwell was wide.
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Maxwell's first shot attempt was blocked by an Ohio State defender prior to Wake Forest's corner opportunity.
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The Deacs continued to control the ball as the team received three more corner opportunities in a span of two minutes.
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Shots by Sky Caron, Ava Cickavage and Lee Ann Gordon were denied by Ohio State's goalkeeper as the match remained scoreless at the nine-minute mark.
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Grace Delmotte and Caron offered strikes on goal before the Buckeyes took their first corner of the match with less than two minutes left in the first.
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The Demon Deacon defense blocked Ohio State's opening shot.
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The match remained scoreless after the opening quarter that saw Wake Forest hold advantages in shots (8-1) and corners (5-1).
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Wake Forest's aggressive offensive attack continued into the second period as the Deacs notched multiple corners and shots in the opening minutes.
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Meike Lanckohr's first shot of the match was blocked before Caron's third strike was blocked.
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The back-and-forth play extended for the remainder of the second period as neither team attempted a shot for the next 10 minutes of the quarter.
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The Demon Deacon penalty corner defense came up big, denying back-to-back corners from Ohio State as the match remained scoreless heading into the halftime break.
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Ellie Todd made her first save of the match on the first shot the freshman faced with less than a minute left in the second.
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The Deacs held advantages in shots (10-3), shots on goal (4-1) and penalty corners (7-3).
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Todd notched the second save of her start to begin the third period as the contest remained scoreless.
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The Buckeyes took their fourth corner prior to the strike.
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The Deacs put two more shot attempts on goal from Brooke McCusker and Maggie Dickman towards the end of the period but the Ohio State goalkeeper was able to notch saves.
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McCusker fired a strike into the back of the net to break the scoreless tie just two minutes into the fourth quarter.
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McCusker tipped a hard pass from Nat Friedman past the Buckeyes' goalkeeper.
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The Deacs opened the final period on the offensive attack, firing off a trio of shots and taking two corners prior to McCusker's first goal of the season.
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The Demon Deacon defense denied Ohio State's two penalty corners and shot attempts in the fourth quarter to claim its second shutout of the season and the team's fifth-straight victory.
Quotables
Head Coach Jennifer Averill- "I'm extremely proud of the entire squad. All 26 came together for jobs needing to be done. We elevated our execution on our press and created many scoring opportunities throughout the game. When called upon, our defensive penalty corner unit was solid. Ellie made some clutch saves to keep us in a position to win the game."
Up Next
Wake Forest continues its road swing next week, traveling to Chapel Hill for its ACC Opener on Friday, Sept. 23 against North Carolina at 4 p.m.
The Deacs will finish off the road trip with a non-conference matchup at Appalachian State on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 12:00 p.m.
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Team Stats
Brooke McCusker
Assisted By: Nat Friedman
settled hard pass in, shot from top of c
47:27
