No. 11 Maryland field hockey draws rematch with Ohio State in first round of Big Ten Tournament

No. 11 Maryland has made it past the regular season and now enters a new phase of the season: the Big Ten Tournament.

In the first round of the conference tournament, the Terps will face No.7 Ohio State.

The last time these two teams faced each other earlier this year, Buckeyes sophomore goalkeeper Maddie Stevens had three stellar saves and graduate forward Makenna Webster scored a game-winning overtime goal in a 2-1 Ohio State win at Buckeye Varsity Field in Columbus, Ohio.

The Buckeyes lost to No. 9 Iowa 2-3 in double overtime in their most recent matchup. Since rattling off four straight wins from Sept. 28 to Oct. 12, including wins over Maryland and No. 11 Michigan, Ohio State has gone cold. Four straight conference losses have dropped the Buckeyes below .500 and lowered their record in Big Ten play from 3-1 to 3-5.

Maryland’s most recent game was a victory, but a rather dominant one against an unranked team.

In their most recent ranked play, the Terps fell to No. 4 Virginia in a 0-2 loss. The game tested Maryland’s defensive stamina and offensive aggression, both of which failed in the end. 

Since the Terps have already played Ohio State, the matchup’s key players are clear.

Webster, of course, is the Buckeyes’ go-to offensive option. The forward has led Ohio State in goals and points by a wide margin. She’s now amassed 18 goals – 14 more than any other Buckeye – for an average of 1.125 goals per game. This statistic has her tied with No. 1 Northwestern’s top scorer, junior forward Ashley Sessa.

Freshman forward Raleigh Kerst made her mark in Maryland and Ohio State’s matchup this season with the first goal of the game. She has since notched one more goal, against Michigan State, and is third on the team in points.

In the goal, Stevens proved difficult, but not impossible, for the Terps to get past. Maryland scored in the fourth quarter and mustered nine shots, including four on goal. Stevens currently ranks fifth in the Big Ten with 57 saves and a 66.3% save percentage.

Since playing Ohio State, Maryland has gone 4-3, most notably including a 1-2 loss to Northwestern. The Terps played solid offense despite the loss and prevented redshirt freshman goalkeeper Juliana Boon from adding to her total of nine shutouts this year.

Maryland will face off against Ohio State for the second and possibly final time on Thursday at 2 p.m. in Bloomington, Indiana.