Field Hockey Tournament: Quarterfinals Recap
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The 31st edition of the Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament opened Thursday with three quarterfinal matches at Phyllis Ocker Field. Ohio State, Rutgers and Maryland earned wins to advance to Friday's semifinals.
Game #1: Ohio State 4, Penn State 3 (2OT)
McKenna Webster scored the game-winner in double overtime as part of a five-point afternoon to lead 11th-ranked Ohio State to a 4-3 win over No. 14 Penn State.
Webster compiled two goals and an assist to help Ohio State (14-5) avenged a one-goal loss to Penn State (9-8) earlier this season. Sophia Gladieux scored her 21st goal of the season and took a team-high five shots while goalkeeper Brie Barraco made 12 saves for the Nittany Lions.
The fifth-seeded Buckeyes take on top-seed Northwestern in the semifinals on Friday at 1 p.m. ET.
Game #2: Rutgers 1, Michigan 0
In a defensive battle, fifth-ranked Rutgers prevailed 1-0 over No. 16 Michigan in a game that featured just eight shots on goal.
Paulina Niklaus scored the game-winner off a penalty corner with under five minutes left in regulation. Michigan (9-8) pulled its goalkeeper in favor of an extra attacker in the final minute, but couldn't score the equalizer. Second-seed Rutgers (16-2) moves on to the semifinals for the second time in three years.
Game #3: Maryland 2, Iowa 0
Maryland won for the ninth time in ten outings with a 2-0 decision over Iowa in the last match of the day.
Freshman goalkeeper Alyssa Klebasko earned her fourth shutout of the season for the eighth-ranked Terrapins (15-4), who outshot No. 7 Iowa (13-5) by a 19-6 count. It was the second meeting between the teams in two weeks with Maryland coming out on top in both contests.
Maryland meets Rutgers in a semifinal starting at 3:30 p.m. on Friday.