OXFORD, Ohio – The Miami University field hockey team (11-7, 5-1 MAC) shut out Central Michigan by a 5-0 margin on Saturday on senior/alumnae day in the final game of the regular season. The win paired with a Kent State loss earned the RedHawks a share of the regular season MAC Championship.
In the first quarter, Miami earned all four penalty corners and took all four shots on the field but two saves by Central Michigan goalkeeper Abigail Ebersole kept the game scoreless after 15 minutes.
Less than a minute into the second quarter,
Leonor Berlie put Miami on the board first with her 12
th goal of the season. She took the ball into the circle on her own and put the ball into the left side of the cage while running right.
In the 19
th minute of play,
Allie Grace Joyner capitalized on the RedHawks lone penalty corner of the second quarter to give Miami a 2-0 lead. Joyner's eighth goal of the season came on an indirect pass on the corner from
Kirsten McNeil.
Central Michigan registered its lone shot of the first half on target but McNeil came up with a defensive save to keep the Chippewas off the board.
Lexi Silver had back-to-back shots on goal midway through the second quarter but Ebersole made two saves to keep it a two-goal game going into halftime.
Central Michigan had the first penalty corner and shot of the second half but Miami countered with three shots in the following four minutes. Ebersole registered two more saves. McNeil then had two shots saved on a penalty corner during the 38
th minute of play.
Neely Lochmoeller increased Miami's lead to 3-0 during the 42
nd minute with her second goal of the season. The initial shot on the penalty corner was deflected by a defensive player and Lochmoeller batted the ball out of the air and into the cage for the goal.
The RedHawks earned a penalty corner less than a minute into the fourth quarter but Ebersole recorded another save.
In the 50
th minute of play, Berlie gave Miami a 4-0 lead with her second goal of the game and 13
th of the season off a cross pass from
Morgan Sturm.
Taylor Curran became the fourth RedHawk to score just four minutes later. Curran's third goal of the season was deflected into the cage after Berlie directed the ball in front.
The Chippewas earned two penalty corners with less than a minute to play but two saves from
Rosie Kalis and a block from the Miami defensive front preserved the shutout.
Berlie led the offense with two goals and five total points on the day while Kalis registered two saves to earn the combined shutout with
Maddie Passarella. Miami outshot Central Michigan 22-5 and earned eight penalty corners to the Chippewas' three.
Miami hosts the 2019 MAC Tournament from Wednesday through Saturday. A full bracket and schedule of games will be available before the start of the tournament.
