Holy cannoli! What a week it was for Ohio State! The 7-2 Buckeyes stormed into the top 20 in the latest Inside Lacrosse rankings with an upset victory over the then No. 3 ranked Denver Pioneers on Saturday at Ohio Stadium, followed by a come from behind win over No. 16 Towson on the road.
Here’s my thoughts from high above the Horseshoe regarding the Denver and Towson games, as well as the Buckeyes’ next game in South Bend against Notre Dame.
OSU defeats #3 Denver 13-11 at Ohio Stadium.
I can’t help but think…
The Buckeyes should still be undefeated. They should’ve beaten Detroit in game one of the season and they had No. 9 Marquette beat too. Oh well. This is the type of win that you look back on when it’s May and you think about the things that got you into the NCAA Tournament.
From start to finish…
The Buckeyes played a perfect game in terms of how you play as an underdog. During the first quarter or so, Denver dominated possession, but OSU stayed with them stride for stride, burying almost all of their opportunities. They had 28 shots, 20 of which were on the cage. This is significantly better than what they have done the majority of the season, which was firing on all cylinders and missing the net a lot. For example, here are the previous two games: Marquette – 38 shots, 21 on goal and Hofstra – 37 shots, 22 on goal. They had more shots on goal in those games, but they were more accurate in their shooting, which they had to be on Saturday.
And they did it without possession from faceoffs!
Denver’s Trevor Baptiste handled his business in the faceoff circle better than anyone I’ve seen this season, winning 19 of 28 faceoffs on the afternoon. Jake Withers went 4-15 in the circle, Christopher May went 3-9, and Kacy Kapinos went 2-4 for Ohio State. This was the most shocking aspect of the upset, because I pointed out last week that OSU needed Christopher May to produce in the circle. Tip of my cap to the Scarlet and Gray and it comes back to capitalizing on their scoring chances and being as accurate as they have been all season shooting-wise, because capitalizing on each possession was vital to their success.
The key…
Was their resiliency. The Pioneers had the lead four different times throughout the game, including two goal leads at three points on the afternoon. The fourth quarter on Saturday was the opposite of the Marquette collapse. Their ball movement was quick and sound, their shooting was precise and goaltender Tom Carey and the Buckeye defense locked down and stymied the highly touted and deep Denver offense. They simply did not quit.
How about Tyler Pfister!
Playing in just his second game of the season, the redshirt-sophomore from Columbus, Ohio potted a hat trick and added an assist on the afternoon. The way that he was shooting, the former Golden Bear from Ohio power Upper Arlington High School could’ve hit a quarter from 15 yards away. Expect to see more from him after this performance as he led the team in goals.
My only concern…
Was that the Buckeyes were beat a lot in one-on-one situations, many of which Denver was able to cash in. However, the offense backed them up accordingly, which was overdue to a certain degree. I’m not going to be a “Debbie Downer” about it because they got the win, so that’s all I’ll say about that. I’m certain that head coach Nick Myers has addressed it and the team has moved forward accordingly.
#17 OSU defeats #16 Towson 7-6 at Johnny Unitas Stadium
How about these guys…
Down 4-1 on the road early in the second quarter and they rally for another win. Carter Brown offered up his back on the offensive end, powering home four goals to bring his season total to 16. Jesse King was held goalless, although he had two assists. His point streak increases to 45 games.
Faceoffs got back to normal…
Chirstopher May won 10 of 16 faceoffs. Possession = scoring opportunities = shots = goals.
Guarding the 6×6 for the Buckeyes…
Tom Carey. More clutch than a college professor canceling your 8 am. Sleep in kids. He made some huge saves among the 11 bullets that he prevented from crossing the goal line.
And the defense!!!
Giving up just six goals. Very hard to lose games when giving up six goals. Just another day at the office for the fourth ranked defense in the nation.
Special teams…
OSU went 2-3 on the man up while once again killing off all penalties that they took (two). Picture Nick Myers and his assistants Jamison Koesterer and Brad Ross giving the ‘Money Manziel’ hands each time the Buckeyes return a man back on the field. That’s pretty much what it’s been like all season.
#17 OSU @ #3 Notre Dame at Arlotta Stadium
Enter the ring of fire for the Buckeyes.
They just defeated a recent No. 3 ranked team in Denver, now they have to deal with another monster in current No. 3 ranked Notre Dame. This is OSU’s final non-conference matchup before they take on Penn State on March 29 in Happy Valley.
Stop Matt Kavanagh…
Last year, this man went into Columbus, walked into Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium, made himself at home, ate the Buckeyes’ dinner and kicked their dog on his way out before making the trip back to Indiana.
In the 13-7 Fighting Irish victory over the Scarlet and Gray, Kavanagh tied a school record with seven goals and added an assist for good measure. Through five games in 2015, he has 12 goals and 13 assists. His stick skills are surgical, he’s super quick, and he’s got a knack for the net combined with his distribution skills.
He’s got some help too…
Notre Dame has the sixth best offense in the country scoring 14.4 goals per game. While Kavanagh leads the team in scoring with 25 points, freshman attackman Mikey Wynne leads the team with 19 goals. Sophomore midfielder Sergio Perkovic is always a threat too, as he has 11 goals and four assists on the 2015 campaign.
Conversely…
Ohio State has the fourth best defense, giving up just 7.22 goals per game. This is going to be a heavyweight bout between the offense and the defense. Even Mulchrone caused two turnovers against Denver and was great again fundamentally.
Special teams…
Will be huge once again. Notre Dame is operating at 75 percent with their man-up conversion rate. OSU is still tops in the nation on the man-down side of things, killing off all ten of the challenges presented to them.
If you’re looking for a comparison…
Ohio State beat Dartmouth 15-5 on Feb. 21. Notre Dame toppled the Big Green 20-5 a week after that. Just thought I’d toss that in, if you’re into that sort of thing.
Looking forward to the week ahead! Catch you next Wednesday!
