After all my gnawing of fingernails and doubt, the Buckeyes turned up the heat in the second half to secure a solid 16-10 victory over their rivals from up north.
Boy howdy, does it feel GREAT to see Ohio State beat TTUN twice in a row, and sweep the season series! Nothing better than sending the worst team in tge land home for good. Victory is sweet, but the job isn't done.
Ohio State has long gone the way of its attackmen, and the Buckeyes down low didn't disappoint when it mattered most. Jack Myers scored three goals and provided an assist, while Colby Smith chipped in three goals of his own. Smith was all volume, going 3-11 on the day, while Myers needed 9 shots to get his hat-trick.
Not to be outdone, Jason Knox scored twice on 3 shots to give the attackmen 8 of 16 goals on 23 shots. That's a mark you're going to take every day of the week.
Today's standout player, however, was Jackson Reid, who put up 5 more goals today to get the Buckeyes another chance at making the tournament! Reid has now scored 41 goals this season, an insane mark for a player primarily running out of the box. His play has been the difference for the Buckeyes all year.
Defensively, the Buckeyes were not really that great. But they did enough to win. The stalwart, again, was Skylar Wahlund. Wahlund repeated his big day from last week, stopping 14 shots and looking like a candidate for All-American the past 5 games. I cannot tell you how much better Wahlund has performed down the stretch than he ever has in his career. It's shocking in the best way possible to see how well he is doing.
Otherwise, Ohio State gave up 46 shots to the Wolverines, which isn't what you want to see. That's a TON for any team to get. Only Wahlund, and some inefficient shooting, kept the Buckeyes from being under duress down the stretch. Still, Ohio State held Brown and Boehm to 0 goals, a very good accomplishment. So more positive than negative.
At the faceoff X, Ohio State evenly split the matchup with their rivals. Inacio was 12-21, which is decent, but Blanchard went 3-9. Matchups are always difficult, so hopefully both players can get in a groove next weekend. They will HAVE to be above 60% to get past Rutgers.
On special teams, Ohio State scored once on two chances, and held the Wolverines scoreless. This is pretty much on par with the vastly improved nature of Buckeye special teams in 2022. It's such a refreshing change, and helped Ohio State get that W.
This was an excellent win over a repeat opponent, during finals week, do kudos to both staff and players for keeping it together. Now, the biggest challenge of the season awaits. With a chance for vengeance. Let it come!
Go Bucks!
Special thanks to NavyBuckeye for keeping the play-by-play up while I am indisposed.
