COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Navy women's soccer team completed its two-game set of action in Ohio with a hard-fought 90-minute loss at Ohio State University by a final score of 2-1 on Sunday. Taking on a Buckeye (4-2) team that was receiving votes in last week's top-25 poll and knocked off No. 18 UCF earlier in the week, the Mids (3-2-1) found themselves in an early 1-0 hole as the host squad scored 92 seconds into the contest at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. A gritty club, Navy fought back during the game, tying it with a Carolyn Mang (Sr., Forest Hill, Md.) goal in the 21st minute before Ohio State netted the go-ahead goal early in the second half to secure the victory.
 
"That's an extremely talented Ohio State team that rightfully so is picked to finish near the top of the Big Ten," remarked head coach Carin Gabarra. "I'm proud of our fight and how competitively we played them today. It is disappointing and will hurt though because no one is happy with a loss. We have to focus on starting faster and coming out prepared at the beginning of games and halves against good teams; giving up early goals makes your job that much more difficult. Offensively, we had a tough time breaking through their stout defense and generating enough possessions on the attack to tie it up."
 
In a storyline similar to last Sunday's matchup at Maryland, the host team, this time the Ohio State Buckeyes, jumped out to an early lead with a Kailyn Dudukovich goal 92 seconds into the game.
 
With the score 1-0 in favor of Ohio State, the Buckeyes were on the hunt for a larger lead as they rattled off three straight shots on goal between the ninth and 13th minutes, though Navy's Mattie Gallagher (So., Gilbertsville, Pa.) stonewalled all of those attempts to keep her club in the contest. After that strong defensive effort, the Mids started making in-roads on the offensive end of the field. That pressure eventually resulted in the game-tying goal for the visitors. In a run of play building off of a corner kick, Chloe Dawson (So., Fairfax, Va.) swung a crossing shot on goal, that the Buckeyes' goalkeeper, Bailey Kolinski, punched into the air where Mang leapt over her nearest defender and powerfully headed the loose ball into the back of the net at 20:27.
 
The back-and-forth nature of the action flipped back to the Buckeyes, who recorded the final four shots of the first half, including another shot on goal, which Gallagher denied.
 
Coming out of the halftime intermission with the game tied 1-1, Ohio State took advantage of an unsettled open to the second half by Navy and recorded two shots within the first five minutes. Unfortunately for the Mids, that second shot, a Kine Flotre attempt beat Gallagher and the hosts were back in the lead by one, 2-1 at 49:54.
 
Unfazed by the one-goal deficit, Navy turned its focus back onto drawing even again as less than five minutes later, Caitlin Doran (Jr., Queens, N.Y.) received a cross from the wing and snapped a header shot on goal that required an athletic stop by Kolinski.
 
Holding a 2-1 lead, Ohio State controlled most of the offensive action over the final 30 minutes of the contest as the Buckeyes recorded six of the game's final seven shots, including an effort in the 65th minute that was destined for the goal if not for a dramatic sweep off the line by Jenna Daunt (So., Haymarket, Va.). Unable to make deep in-roads in Ohio State's defensive third, Navy's lone shot down the final stretch of action was a Katie Herrmann (So., Charlotte, N.C.) attempt that missed wide right in the 90th minute.
 
For the game, Ohio State outshot Navy, 19-4 with a 7-3 advantage in shots on goal and a 10-1 margin in corner kicks.
 
"This is the type of team you hope to be playing in the postseason in November," said Gabarra in closing. "Today's game should help us down the road as we have that added experience of playing a top-level team like Ohio State and going toe-to-toe with them for 90 minutes."
 
After playing four straight games away from Annapolis, Navy will be back in action at home this coming weekend with a Friday night tilt versus Mount St. Mary's at 7 p.m. and a late Sunday afternoon showdown with Air Force at 5 p.m.