Ohio soccer off to hot start

by Lonnie McMillan
for The Post

For the Ohio soccer team, two wins this weekend against Northern Illinois and Western Michigan would signal a major turnaround from the season's start.

Ohio (4-1 overall, 1-0 Mid-American Conference) began last season 3-5. Midfielder Kendra Hornschemeier said she knew things would be different this year.

"In preseason, I saw we would have a good start," she said. "Last year, our start wasn't as good. We have a lot of talent and we have been working well together."

Ohio's only loss was to Marquette, who is ranked No. 8 in the Midwest, but the Bobcats have responded by posting victories against two teams who qualified for the NCAA Tournament last season.

The Bobcats begin the final two games of a five-game homestand against Northern Illinois at 4p.m. today.

Northern Illinois (2-3, 0-1) struggled to only three wins last season, but forward Gina Siedentopf said the Huskies should not be taken lightly.

"I'm going to expect them to come out and play hard because we're the No. 1 team," she said. "They're all going to want to come out and beat us."

The Bobcats did struggle with the Huskies in last season's 2-1 win.

Ohio also has to prepare for a game against Western Michigan the following day.

The Broncos, who traditionally have been one of the better teams in the MAC, finished 8-11 last season.

Western Michigan (3-3, 1-0) has produced better results so far this season, including a 5-0 win against Buffalo last weekend.

Coach Stacy Strauss said she expects the Broncos to be one of the better teams in the conference this season.

"They had a big win over Buffalo on Sunday and they've been scoring a lot of goals and probably they're going to be coming in with a lot of confidence, looking to redeem themselves from last year," she said.

Western Michigan goalkeeper Marjie Fleshman has posted a 0.89 goals-against-average and has posted two shutouts. Forwards Kersten Conklin and Sara Cultra have combined for seven goals.

Forward Christel Schiering leads Ohio's offense, which has seen a major increase in scoring this season. She has scored in every game, amassing eight goals.

Strauss said victories this weekend against the Huskies and Broncos would make an impact on many people.

"It would be really a great indication of the progress this program has made the last couple years," she said. "Bringing that together with the improvements on the field and support from our fans and the community, it would be a really nice way to send a message to the conference that we're the top team and the one to beat."

Ohio plays against Northern Illinois at 4 p.m. today and against Western Michigan at 1 p.m. Sunday at Chessa Field.