Bison Field Hockey had back-to-back games in Ohio this past weekend. They started off the weekend against Ball State and closed against Ohio State. Both games were close matches, with the Bison tallying three goals the whole weekend.

At the start of the game against Ball State, the Bison fell behind early, 1-0. The rest of the first period lacked a lot of action except for a penalty stroke for Bucknell. Lily Neilson ’25 took the shot but was unable to put the ball in the back of the cage.

In the second quarter, the Bison outshot Ball State 5-1, with three of the shots coming from Neilson. Ball State’s defense prevented any goals by the Bison. Sarah Althouse ’27 also stood strong in goal, preventing Ball State from getting any balls in. 

Neilson came up successful on her fifth shot of the third quarter. Her goal was assisted by Isabella Pavlides ’25. Ball State had three penalty corners and four shots but were unable to score off the Bison.

The final quarter proved unsuccessful, with minimal threats from either team. The game went into overtime, where the Bison were able to seal the deal. Pavlides assisted Neilson once again to lead the Bison to a 2-1 win.

Two days later, the Bison made their way to Ohio State. Many attempts were made early on in the game, with two penalty corners in the first four minutes. Ohio State had seven penalty corners in the first quarter but were unable to get the ball past the goal line. The Buckeyes managed to score in the last 11 seconds. 

Both teams had strong defensive performances in the second quarter. Ohio State had one penalty corner but were unable to score. Neilson came close but was stopped by the goalpost.

The third quarter saw more action with multiple penalty corners on each end. Ohio State managed to score on Althouse to put them up 2-0.

The Bison got their first goal in the 54th. Kari Melberger ’24 got to the ball after sophomore Kira Leclercq’s shot hit the post. She passed to Pavlides, who got the ball in the back of the net. Neither team scored for the remainder of the game. Ohio State won 2-1.

“Even though we may not have won the game against Ohio State, we fought until the last minute, putting them under an immense amount of pressure. I think it is fair to say that we were right there with them throughout the game, we had two shots on goal go off the post, so hopefully later on in the season with more refined skills, we’ll see them go in when it really matters,” said Neilson.

Field Hockey has their first home game against Towson Friday, Sept. 8.