Ohio State Advances to Sweet 16 with 2-1 Win Over Milwaukee

Durham, N.C. – The Ohio State women’s soccer team topped 15th-ranked and second-seeded Milwaukee 2-1 Friday evening in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Koskinen Stadium on the campus of Duke University. With the win, the Buckeyes (12-8-2) advance to the round of 16 for the second consecutive year and take on the Duke/Georgia winner at 1 p.m. Sunday at Koskinen Stadium.

Ohio State controlled possession for much of the match and held the top scoring team in the country to just one shot on goal, a free kick by Sarah Hagen with 15 seconds that resulted in the Panthers’ lone tally.

"At halftime we talked about how we were going with one or two players in the attack and that we needed to really have a commitment of five players,” Walker added. “We drew that up and looked at it and a lot of it was needing to come from shooting balls wider and having more width in the attack. We were coming down central, taking too many shots from outside areas, and Milwaukee has an excellent goalkeeper so those weren't going to be particularly dangerous for her. Attacking from wider positions was much more dynamic for us in the second half."

The Buckeyes first solid chance came in the 18th minute when Liz Sullivan bent a shot in from 25 yards out on the left wing but it sailed just over the crossbar.

Ohio State was able to control possession for most of the first half but did not muster many good scoring chances until the last minute of the half when Tiffany Cameron drilled a shot from 25 yards out that Milwaukee goalkeeper Jamie Forbes was able to barely deflect over the crossbar. The Buckeyes were unable to do anything with the ensuing corner and the teams went into the break scoreless.

Ohio State held an 11-2 advantage in shots over the first 45 minutes including 4-0 on goal.

After a back and forth first 10 minutes of the second half, the Panthers recorded their first quality chance of the game when Sarah Hagen possessed with her back to goal, turned and drilled a shot from the top of the box just over the crossbar.

The Buckeyes then took the 1-0 lead in the 68th minute when Paige Maxwell controlled a pass from Danica Wu, beat a Milwaukee defender and finished top shelf past a diving Forbes from 20 yards out.

Ohio State then added to the lead with what proved to be a valuable insurance tally by Caitlyn Martin in the 85th minute. Cameron controlled a long ball from Ellyn Gruber, beat a Milwaukee defender and slotted a through ball to Martin who finished with her left from the top of the box.

For the game, the Buckeyes held a 21-10 advantage in shots including 6-1 on goal. Ohio State also tallied three corners without allowing one to the Panthers. With the win, the 2011 senior class tied the 2010 class for tops all-time at Ohio State with 51 career victories.