Ohio State
4-0
Air Force
0-3
Ohio State In Complete Control with 12-4 win over Air Force
2/17/2024 3:40:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
Buckeyes improve to 4-0 on the season in front of a meeting with Virginia next week
COLUMBUS, Ohio – After three consecutive wins at home to open the season, the Ohio State men's lacrosse team put forth a dominating effort on the road in defeating the Air Force Academy, 12-4, on a sunny, but chilly – 29 degrees – day in Colorado Springs, Colo. The Buckeyes improved to 4-0 in 2024 with the win and the Falcons dropped to 0-3.
The Short Story
Four different players scored in a stellar first period that resulted in a 4-0 Ohio State lead. The Buckeyes led, 14-4, in shots and 8-1 in shots on goal in the quarter while a perfect six-of-six on clears with but one turnover.
A fifth different Buckeye – Dillon Magee – scored for the Buckeyes in the second quarter and then in rapid succession he added a second and a third goal as Ohio State built a 7-2 halftime lead. Ohio State lead Air Force, 20-10, in shots and 12-4 in shots on goal at the half but did have six turnovers in the quarter.
Ohio State outscored Air Force, 3-2, in the third quarter to extend the lead to 10-4 and then held the Falcons scoreless in the fourth, while tallying twice, for the 12-4 final.
Ben Mayer led the offense with four goals – and a career-best points day – and Dillon Magee added three plus an assist for a pair of Buckeye hat tricks. Magee's four points was also a career-high. Eight different Buckeyes scored points. Goalie Caleb Fyock had nine saves as he and the Buckeyes, fifth nationally in fewest goals allowed entering the game, should improve on that stat after allowing just four to the Falcons. Shots (36-26) and shots on goal (19-13) were in favor of the Buckeyes as were faceoffs won (12-8). Ohio State also lead in ground balls, 29-17. Clears and turnovers were virtually the same for the two teams.
How The Goals Were Scored
- Ed Shean opened the scoring less than five minutes into the game with an unassisted goal, his sixth of the year, to give the Buckeyes a quick lead.
- At the 4:16 mark of the first quarter, Alex Marinier was moving to his right and fired a laser past Air Force goalkeeper Quinn Richards for a 2-0 advantage for the Buckeyes.
- Two minutes later, Ben Mayer took a pass behind the net from Dillon Magee and quickly circled around the left side of the net and buried a goal – his sixth of the season – for a 3-0 lead.
- With nine seconds left in the first quarter, Garrett Haas took a sweet feed from Shean, who was positioned behind the net, and scored his first goal of the season for a 4-0 lead after one.
- Air Force cut its deficit to three with a goal by Josh Yago less than a minute into the second quarter.
- Less than a minute later Magee scored his second goal of the season on an unassisted rocket past Richards to extend the Buckeyes lead back to four goals at 5-1.
- Yago countered at 10:49 for the Falcons to keep the home team in striking distance at 5-2.
- Magee's third goal of the season was a beauty as he bulled his way past two Falcon defenders for a shot from three yards out for a 6-2 Buckeye lead.
- Magee completed a back-to-back-to-back trio of consecutive goals just 30 seconds later with a lovely one-handed goal from seven yards out to increase the lead to 7-2.
- The Falcons closed to within 7-3 with a goal by Chris Bardak ats the 11:34 mark of the third quarter.
- Just over six minutes later Mayer scored his second goal of the game, unassisted, to put the Buckeyes back on top by five, 8-3.
- Team leading scorer Gannon Matthews scored at 4:25 on a power move to the left of Air Force goalie Richards and bounced a goal in to make it 9-3. It was Matthews' 11th goal of the season.
- The Falcons responded, though, with a goal by Turner Ashby a minute later to cut the lead to 9-4.
- Mayer scored his hat trick moments later, taking a pass from Shean and gliding in alone on Richards before burying his eighth goal of the year for a 10-4 lead.
- Ohio State extended the lead to 11-4 with another goal goal by Mayer at the 12:49 mark of the fourth quarter. After Ohio State goalie Caleb Fyock launched a clearing pass to the Air Force end, Mayer received the pass 15 yards out with an empty net in front of him for a clean deposit.
- Tate Jones skipped a pass to Kurt Bruun with 6:04 left to play and Bruun buried a low shot for a 12-4 Buckeye advantage.
Statistically Speaking
Ohio State Scoring (G-A-P): Mayer 4-0-4, Magee 3-1-4, Shean 1-2-3, Marinier1-0-1, Haas 1-0-1, Matthews 1-0-1, Matthews 1-0-1, Bruun 1-0-1, Jones 0-1-1
Ground Balls: Ohio State 29, Air Force 17
Faceoffs: Ohio State 12-of-20, Air Force 8-of-20
Clears: Ohio State 19-of-23, Air Force 19-of-22
Extra Man: Ohio State 0-for-4, Air Force 0-for-4
Saves: Ohio State (Fyock) 9, Air Force (Richards) 7
Turnovers: Air Force 16, Ohio State 17
What's Next
The Buckeyes travel to Charlottsville, Va., to play Virginia next Sunday, Feb. 25, at 1 p.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
