Ohio State Opens 2024 Season with Two-Game Homestand

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State kicks off its 54th season of field hockey this weekend, where the Buckeyes will host UAlbany (Friday, 4 p.m.) and Bucknell (Sunday, 2 p.m.). Information on live stats and streaming for both games can be found on the schedule page of OhioStateBuckeyes.com.

The Basics

Ohio State vs. UAlbany // Friday, Aug. 30 // 4 p.m. // Buckeye Varsity Field // Columbus, Ohio

Watch: B1G + // Live Stats // Ohio State Roster // UAlbany Roster // Ohio State Schedule

Ohio State vs. Bucknell // Sunday, Sept. 1 // 2 p.m. // Buckeye Varsity Field // Columbus, Ohio

Watch: B1G + // Live Stats // Ohio State Roster // Bucknell Roster // Ohio State Schedule

 

Promotions This Weekend

• Friday’s game is the Buckeyes’ 2024 home opener and staff appreciation game.
• On Sunday, fans are encouraged to bring their furry friends to Buckeye Varsity Field for Pups at the Pitch.
• Sunday will also serve as Ohio State’s annual Our Honor Defend Military Appreciation game.
• Admission to all Ohio State field hockey games is free. Parking is available in the lots surrounding Buckeye Varsity Field, specifically at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.

 

Briefly on the Buckeyes

• The Buckeyes return 23 letter winners from the 2023 campaign, where they capped the season with 14 wins — the most in 13 years —and an appearance in the Big Ten Tournament semifinal.
• Head coach Jarred Martin enters his eighth season at Ohio State, where he’s led the Scarlet and Gray to 18 wins against Top-25 teams and a 70-60 record.
• Key returners include last season’s top-two leading scorers: graduate student Makenna Webster and sophomore Brenna Bough, who combined for 29 goals in 2023. Webster also led the team in assists with 12.
• With 66 saves in 2023, senior goalkeeper Abby Danson now sits in 10th for career saves at Ohio State. She also boasts a .711 save percentage, placing her seventh all-time.
• The Buckeyes are 6-4 in their last 10 season openers.
• Ohio State welcomes eight newcomers to the 2024 squad: Philippa Schipper, a back from Rotterdam, Netherlands; Maya Walker, a back/midfielder from Greenwich, Conn.; Grace Dixon, a back from Virginia Beach, Va.; Maddie Bogle, a back/midfielder from Lansdale, Pa.; Sienna Golden, a forward from Berwyn, Pa.; Victoria Kutz, a midfielder/back from Hummelstown, Pa.; Ava Hershberger, a back from Harrison City, Pa.; and Kari Melberger, a midfielder from West Pittston, Pa.

 

Scouting UAlbany

• This is the seventh matchup between the Buckeyes and the Great Danes
• Ohio State leads the series 4-2, with the last meeting being a 2022 Buckeye win by a 3-0 decision
• UAlbany finished the 2023 season 13-6 overall and 8-1 in the America East Conference
• Ohio State head coach Jarred Martin is a UAlbany alum, where he graduated in 2005 as well as in 2012 with a masters in sports administration.
• Julianne Zunic and Rylee Zunic of UAlbany are the sisters of Ohio State senior Jenna Zunic. They are triplets.

 

Scouting Bucknell

• Picked to finish second in the Patriot League preseason poll with star defender Kira Leclercq winning preseason DPOY honors
• The Bisons return the senior forward Lily Neilson – 2023 Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year – who tallied 13 goals last season.
• Ohio State leads the all-time series 3-1, outscoring the Bisons 14-5 in total.
• The Buckeyes’ only loss to Bucknell came in a 2013 overtime game where Ohio State fell short 3-2.

 

Buckeyes by the Numbers

3.10: Ohio State finished tied for sixth nationally in goals per game with 3.10/match.

36-12: The Buckeyes out-scored their opponents 36-12 in all home games last season. That’s the most since 2012, where they scored 37.

74 percent: Ohio State will return 74 percent of their point production from last season, led by three of their top five point producers. Webster, with 46 points on 17 goals and 12 assists, leads the way, followed by Bough (12G 2A) and senior Hallie Brost (3G 4A).