Despite two goals from junior midfielder Peyton McNamara, No. 6 Ohio State’s season came to an end after a 5-2 loss to No. 3 Arkansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Buckeyes (11-6-3, 5-3-2 Big Ten) opened the scoring in the seventh minute when McNamara scored her sixth goal of the season, firing a shot into the top-right corner of the Arkansas net.
However, the Razorbacks (13-3-4, 6-2-2 SEC) answered in the 15th minute on a header by senior defender Bea Franklin. It was all Arkansas from then on.
The Razorbacks took the lead in the 25th minute courtesy of senior forward Anna Podojill’s right-footed shot into the bottom right corner of the Ohio State net.
The Buckeyes had a chance to equalize in the 39th minute with two point-blank shots by first-year forward Dakota Lyons and sophomore forward Kailyn Dudukovich, but both were saved by graduate goalkeeper Grace Barbara.
Franklin scored her second of the night in the 42nd minute, extending Arkansas’ lead to 3-1 on a header from a corner kick.
The Razorbacks held a 17-4 advantage in shots at halftime and an 8-1 edge in corner kicks.
Senior midfielder Jessica De Filippo opened the second-half scoring in the 52nd minute on a right-footed shot that found the bottom-left side of the Buckeye net.
Arkansas extended the lead to 5-1 in the 83rd minute on a goal by junior forward Ava Tankersley who scored off a rebound given by Ohio State graduate goalkeeper Kat Robinson.
McNamara scored her second of the night and seventh of the season in the 85th minute, again finding the top-right corner of the net with her right foot. But it was not enough, as the Razorbacks won 5-2, outshooting the Buckeyes 27-13, and ending Ohio State’s 2022 season.
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