Buckeyes Drop 3-1 Decision to Dayton Dutch Lions in Connor Senn Memorial Match – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/4/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Dayton Dutch Lions FC claimed a 3-1 victory over the Ohio State men’s soccer team in the 10th annual Connor Senn Memorial Match Tuesday evening at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. The teams were tied at the half after a goal from Buckeye Ben Killian, but the Lions used a pair of unanswered tallies in the second half to come away with the win.
“[The Dutch Lions are] very good,” John Bluem, Ohio State head coach, said. “Not off to a good start in the USL, but now that they’re in Division I, so they are learning and improving. We wish them the best for the rest of the season and are very appreciative of their support of this event.”
The Lions went on top late in the 44th minute on a penalty kick by Joe Tait, but the Buckeyes quickly tied it up midway through the 45th minute when Chris Hegngi headed the ball over to Killian for the sophomore defender to poke into the back of the net from point-blank range.
With the score tied coming out of the intermission, the Buckeyes fired off four of the first five shots in the opening 10 minutes, three of which were stopped by the Lions’ keeper Brian Visser. Despite having momentum in its favors, Ohio State surrendered its second goal of the night, this time to Mikael McNamara off an assist from Marvin van der Pluijm. McNamara re-directed a shot from van der Pluijm into the right of the Buckeyes’ goalkeeper.
The Lions stretched the lead to 3-1 early in the 83rd minute when Lucien Seymour sent a corner kick into play for Kolby LaCrone to get a foot on and capitalize on a miscue by the OSU defense by sending into the right side of the goal mouth. The Buckeyes had the opportunity to tie it just a few moments later with their own penalty kick opportunity, but Sage Gardner’s attempt nailed the crossbar and the score remained 3-1 for the balance of the contest.
Despite the negative result, however, Ohio State remains a winner off the field as the legacy of Connor Senn lives on yet another year.
All money generated from the ticket sales and silent auction Tuesday went into the Connor Senn Memorial Fund, which will now be directed towards the creation and implementation of the Connor Senn Educational Symposium on Sudden Cardiac Death in Athletes. The project, announced Monday, is a joint venture between The Ohio State University Medical Center’s Dorothy M. Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, The Richard M. Ross Heart Hospital, the Ohio State University Department of Athletics, the Ohio State University men’s soccer team, and the Connor Senn Memorial Fund.
“We’re pleased to have had the support of the community in putting on this special event and supporting the scholarship fund for 10 years now,” he said. “We’re especially excited about our new partnership with the pleased with the heart hospital and we foresee great things coming from that in the future. This game is all about honoring Connor’s memory and raising money and awareness for heart disease.”
At halftime, Connor’s father, Dr. Lance Senn, Ohio State Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics, Gene Smith, and Head Coach of the Ohio State Men’s Soccer team John Bluem presented a check in the amount of $50,000.00 to Director of Interventional Cardiovascular Research in the Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, Dr. Richard Gumina, in Connor’s name.
The Connor Senn Memorial Match concludes the Buckeyes’ spring season. The 2011 campaign begins with an exhibition against Wright State at 7 p.m. Aug. 17 in Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. Ohio State opens the regular-season at the Penn State Classic Aug. 27-29 before hosting the annual Bert & Iris Wolstein Classic Sept. 2-4. Stay tuned to OhioStateBuckeyes.com for information throughout the offseason, as well as the official Facebook (facebook.com/OhioStateMensSoccer) and Twitter (twitter.com/OhioState_MSOC) pages of the men’s soccer program.
