Ohio State men’s lacrosse sweeps Midwest Lacrosse Classic with 9-5 win over Bellarmine

Despite scoring just nine goals in the matchup, the Ohio State Buckeyes men’s lacrosse team came out on top in a closely-fought battle against Bellarmine in their final game in the Midwest Lacrosse Classic in Columbus over the weekend.

Bellarmine opened the game with two quick goals in the first quarter to go up 2-0 on Ohio State, who struggled to find offense in the opening minutes of the game. Bellarmine won the first two faceoffs of the day, and had a 9-0 shot advantage on Ohio State through the first half of the quarter. The Buckeyes finally found the back of the net on a goal by sophomore midfielder Trevor Hodgins with 39 seconds remaining in the first, turning the tide in favor of Ohio State. After winning the ensuing faceoff, sophomore attackman Colin Chell tied the game at 2-2 heading into the second quarter. The Buckeyes then dominated the entire quarter, scoring four unanswered goals to bring the score to 6-2 heading into the half.

The third quarter was stagnant on offense for both teams coming as defenses remained unforgiving. Bellarmine finally scored the only goal of the quarter with 3:58 remaining in the third, snapping a 35:30 scoreless streak by redshirt junior goalie Tom Carey, who had seven saves during the stretch which had begun in the first quarter. Ohio State once again found its offense heading into the fourth quarter, scoring three unanswered goals to go up 9-3. They would hold on, despite two Bellarmine goals late in the game, for the 9-5 victory.

The Buckeyes were once again saved by their defense as Carey finished the day with nine saves, following up his career-high 16-save performance against Marquette. Senior attackman Carter Brown, junior Austin Shanks and Chell each had two goals on the day, and junior midfielder Jake Withers went six-and-six on faceoffs.

With the win, the Buckeyes improve to 5-1 on the season. The team will head to New York this weekend to face No. 9 Hofstra.