Aug. 21, 2011
Head Coach Lori Walker Postgame Interview
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Ohio State vs. Radford Game Highlights
Aug. 21, 2011
Columbus, Ohio – The eighth-ranked Ohio State women’s soccer team topped visiting Radford, the Big South Conference defending champion, 4-0 under cloudy skies and intermittent showers at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium Sunday afternoon.
Freshman Kiiri Kuld scored two goals and the Buckeyes outshot the Highlanders 23-1 in the match. Ohio State held a 4-0 advantage in corner kicks, putting the Buckeyes ahead 16-0 in that statistic for the season.
“A lot of this match was played by us keeping possession of the ball and trying to find our rhythm,” said Ohio State coach Lori Walker. “A lot of our strength is in the midfield, and we did a good job with that today. In general, we had a good day offensively.
“The main things we talked about (after the opener with Xavier) were our box-in training, being cleaner and getting it near the post, header services, and trying to find open spaces. I think we did a much better job of that today. We just moved the ball much better. I think everyone was just moving off the ball and our passing was better. Our ability to move into scoring position was much better today as well.
“It’s still early season, so as we start to evolve, we’re still trying to become one as a team. We want to be on the same page and moving in the same direction.”
The Buckeyes held a 2-0 first-half lead. Aly Walker scored just four minutes into the contest, finishing a cross from Danica Wu with a 10-yard shot; Wu and Kendyl Reed had the assists. In the 13th minute, Kuld scored her first career goal, an eight-yard shot off a cross from Paige Maxwell; Maxwell and Ellyn Gruber had the assists.
Ohio State, which outshot Radford 14-0 in the first period, had several other scoring opportunities. In the 12th minute, Reed dribbled past a defender but her shot from 25 yards sailed just over the crossbar. In the 22nd minute, a goal by Maxwell off a cross from Liz Sullivan was called off because of a foul. In the 41st minute, Radford goalkeeper Lisa Lubke made a diving save on a breakaway by Tiffany Cameron.
In the second half, Maxwell posted her first goal of the season in the 62nd minute, with a six-yard shot through the ball off assists from Gruber and Caroline Murray. Kuld scored the game’s final goal in the 75th minute on a 25-yard shot off an assist by Danica Wu.
Maxwell has moved to eighth place on the Ohio State all-time list in career points with 56, moving ahead of Danielle Dietrich (2002-05), Becky Borchers (1995-98) and tying Coleen Hoban (2002-04). Maxwell is now seventh in career goals with 25.
The 2-0 Buckeyes return to action Friday at Missouri in a 6:30 p.m. match. Ohio State’s next home game is Sunday, hosting Wright State at 6 p.m. Radford drops to 1-1.
