Ohio State
Penn State
No. 11 Ohio State, No. 14 Penn State Open Big Ten Tournament on Thursday
10/31/2023 3:14:00 PM | General, Field Hockey
Buckeyes look to set a date with top-seeded Northwestern in the semifinals on Friday
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The postseason for Ohio State begins on Thursday, as the 11th-ranked and fifth-seeded Buckeyes open the Big Ten Tournament with a date against fourth-seeded Penn State at 11 a.m. in Ann Arbor, Mich. The game will be streamed live on B1G+ and live stats will be available on the schedule page of OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
The Basics
No. 11 Ohio State vs. No. 14 Penn State // Thursday, Nov. 2 // 11 a.m. // Ann Arbor, Mich.
Watch Live: B1G+ // Tournament Central // Ohio State Schedule/Results // Penn State Schedule/Results
Basics on the Buckeyes
- Ohio State has been idle since its regular season finale on Sunday, Oct. 22, a 7-0 shutout of Bellarmine. The win improved the Buckeyes' overall record to 13-5.
- Ohio State was 4-4 in Big Ten play this season with wins over Michigan, Michigan State, Indiana and Iowa.
- The 13 regular seasons wins are the most by an Ohio State team since 2010, the same year that the Buckeyes made their first-ever trip to the NCAA Final Four.
- A part of Ohio State's success in the regular season was the play of its offense, which ranks among the top units in the country. The Buckeyes averaged 3.17 goals per game – good for seventh-best nationally – and scored four or more goals seven times.
- Leading that unit is Makenna Webster, a senior forward who is also a member of Ohi State's women's ice hockey team. Webster has 41 points on 15 goals and 11 assists. Her goal and point totals are third-best in the conference.
- The Buckeyes possess balance, though, as three players finished the regular season with 20 or more points. Freshman Brenna Bough had a hat trick vs. Bellarmine to raise her point total to 24 (11 goals, two assists) while Julie Rodijk scored nine times and added two assists for 20 points.
- Ohio State's defense limited 12 of its 18 regular season opponents to one goal or less. Senior goalkeeper Abby Danson has started 56 career games and the unit in front of her – led by fifth-year senior Delaney Lawler – combined to rank 12th nationally in scoring defense.
Setting the Stage
- The winner of Thursday's quarterfinal game will meet top-seeded and regular season champion Northwestern in the first of two semifinal games on Friday (1 p.m.).
- The two semifinals on Friday and the championship game on Sunday will both be broadcast live on BTN.
- The winner of this year's tournament receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, which begins next weekend.
History vs. Penn State
- The Buckeyes and Nittany Lions met on Oct. 6 this season in State College, Pa. with Penn State coming out to a 2-1 win on goals from Sophia Gladieux and Mackenzie Allessie.
- PSU also finished 4-4 in Big Ten play and received the No. 4 seed following it win over Indiana to conclude the regular season.
- The last time Ohio State and Penn State met in the Big Ten Tournament was in the spring of 2020. The Buckeyes won that game in overtime and went on to defeat Northwestern in the semifinals on their way to the championship game vs. Michigan.
Numbers To Know
57: The 57 goals scored this season is tied with Cornell for the most in the country. Only seven teams total have 50 or more goals this year.
4: Ohio State has top 10 national rankings in four major offensive categories: goals per game (7th – 3.17), points per game (8th – 8.67), scoring average (9th – 3.12) and scoring margin (5th – +2.02).
9.06: Only one team – Saint Joseph's from the Atlantic 10 – has averaged more penalty corners per game than Ohio State (9.06). The 163 total corners are the most in the country.
41: The 41 points this season by Makenna Webster the most by an Ohio State player in 13 years, since Aisling Coyle had 55 in 2010.
+181: Ohio State has 181 more total shots than its opponents this season. Only one this season did it finish a game with fewer shots than their opponent.
