Oct. 22, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State field hockey team (11-5, 3-2) suffered its second straight loss on Saturday, falling to the 18th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes by a score of 2-0 at the Penn State Field Hockey Complex. Ohio State held the Big Ten's top offense scoreless. Penn State has not scored in its last two games.
"Our biggest problem in the contest today is we couldn't score obviously," said head coach Charlene Morett. "We did have a lot of great opportunities. We had two shots hit the post. Our penalty corner execution was a bit disappointing, but you can't take anything away from Ohio State. They played a great game on defense and all-around."
Ohio State's Jenn Sciulli and Berta Queralt scored goals for the Buckeyes, one coming in the first half and the other coming in the second. Ally Tuntis made six stops in the cage for the Ohio State. On the other side, redshirt junior Ayla Halus (Hershey, Pa.) made four saves in goal. The Nittany Lions outshot the Buckeyes, 15-9, but were unable to execute any of their chances.
Penn State was the team that applied pressure early, as redshirt junior Hannah Allison (Mifflinburg, Pa.) fired a shot just 3:24 in that was kick-saved by Tuntis. The Nittany Lions were rewarded two penalty corners, one of which was shot wide by Allison, and another shot that was rocketed by junior Kelsey Amy (Sweet Valley, Pa.) that was saved by Tuntis.
Ohio State would begin to bring pressure at the nine-minute mark. Danica Deckard shot one on goal that was saved by Halus, but the Buckeyes were not finished. Queralt would fire a shot moments later off a penalty corner that would go by Halus. Ohio State led 1-0 10:33 into the game.
At the 23:44 mark, Penn State had two great scoring opportunities off penalty corners. Sophomore Brittany Grzywacz (Collegeville, Pa.) dragged a shot that went off the post. Then three minutes later, freshman Jenna Chrismer (Mountain Top, Pa.) garnered the ball in the middle and clinked it off the post.
In the second half, the Buckeyes would go up 2-0 when Sciulli fourth goal of the season with 22 minutes left. The Nittany Lions would finish off the game with a couple of scoring opportunities, but shots by Amy and sophomore Whitney Reddig (Lititz, Pa.) were saved.
Penn State will next travel to Bucknell this Tuesday in a 6 p.m. matchup with the Bison. The regular season will close out at home against Michigan State next Sunday.
Penn State hosts the 2011 Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament from Nov. 3-6. Tickets for the Big Ten Tournament can be purchased by contacting the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office at 814-865-5555. All session passes are $18 for adults and $12 for students/senior citizens. Single session tickets will run at $8 for adults and $5 for students/senior citizens. Groups of 15 people or more may also purchase tickets at $12 for all session passes and $5 for a single session.
Check back to GoPSUsports.com for continued Penn State Field Hockey updates throughout the 2011 season.
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