Ohio State men’s hockey sweeps Michigan State

The 11th-ranked Ohio State men’s ice hockey team continued Ohio State’s domination over the state of Michigan over the weekend, posting a two-game series sweep in Columbus. Friday night, Ohio State recorded a 3-1 win to open the series. After a scoreless first period, sophomore forward Gustaf Westlund found the back of the net midway through the second to give the Buckeyes their first lead of the day. Ohio State extended the lead early in the third on a score from senior forward Ronnie Hein. Though the Spartans would tighten things up with a goal of their own at the 15-minute mark, Ohio State would rally with another goal from Hein to seal the victory. The most impressive story, however, came from freshman goalie Ryan Snowden, who had 26 saves in his first collegiate start.

Saturday was even more dominant defensively for the Buckeyes, who pitched a 2-0 shutout over the Spartans. Following up on Snowden’s performance the day before, junior goalie Tommy Nappier had 23 saves on 23 shots from Michigan State. Offensively, senior forward Tanner Laczynski scored the opening goal for Ohio State in the first period. In the closing minutes of the third period, senior defenseman Gordi Myer scored on an open net to give the Buckeyes their two-goal advantage.

With the sweep, Ohio State improves to 9-4-1 on the season, including 5-3 in conference play. The Buckeyes will be back in action Friday and Saturday night with a two-game series against Minnesota in Columbus.

Wrestling records impressive home win

The eighth-ranked Ohio State wrestling team may have dropped precipitously in the national rankings after its loss to No. 5 Virginia Tech, but the Buckeyes are looking to prove why they remain one of the top squads in the country. They had a good start Sunday, recording a 23-9 win over Cornell in a sold-out Covelli Center in Columbus.

Ohio State took 7-of-10 bouts on the day, led by senior Luke Pletcher (141-pounds), redshirt freshman Sammy Sasso (149-pounds), redshirt sophomore Ethan Smith (165-pounds), redshirt sophomore Kaleb Romero (174-pounds) and redshirt senior Kollin Moore (197-pounds). Redshirt junior Gary Traub (285-pounds) and sophomore Malik Heinselman (125-pounds) also recorded wins for the Buckeyes.

With the win, Ohio State improves to 3-1 in dual matches on the season. The Buckeyes look to build on that momentum when they travel to the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational this weekend.

Women’s basketball splits run at South Point Shootout

Ohio State women’s basketball headed west for Thanksgiving, playing in two games as part of the South Point Shootout in Las Vegas. In the Buckeyes’ first matchup Friday afternoon, Ohio State fell 68-53 to South Dakota. While that wasn’t the result Ohio State was hoping for, the squad emerged with a strong performance from yet another freshman. In this game, forward Rebeka Mikulasikova had a season-high 19 points, connecting on 5-of-9 field goal attempts. Fellow freshmen Kiersten Bell and Jacy Sheldon had 12 and 10 points, respectively, on the day.

However, the Buckeyes bounced back against Northern Iowa Saturday in the first-ever meeting between the two programs. In that case, Ohio State came away with a 64-26 victory. Sheldon proved to be the hero of that matchup, recording a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds on the day. Madison Greene, another freshman on the young squad, added a dozen points of her own, though it was sophomore Dorka Juhasz who had a team-high 14 points on the night.

With the win Saturday, Ohio State improves to 4-3 on the season. Next up, the Buckeyes return home to face No. 8 Louisville at Value City Arena Thursday.

Women’s hockey posts win over No. 3 Cornell

The Ohio State women’s ice hockey team split a tough, two-game series at home against No. 3 Cornell this weekend. In fact, the Buckeyes’ opener against the Big Red was Cornell’s first loss of the season.

In that Friday night matchup, the sixth-ranked Buckeyes recorded a 3-1 win. After a scoreless first period, Cornell took a lead in the second. However, Ohio State would quickly bounce back -- and then some -- on two goals from junior forward Emma Maltais. Sophomore defenseman Madison Bizal would tie the Buckeyes’ win up with a final goal in the third period. Impressively, junior forward Liz Schepers assisted on each of Ohio State’s goals on the night.

Unfortunately, that sort of success didn’t continue into the Buckeyes’ matchup Saturday, as Ohio State fell 5-1. With 15 penalties recorded over the course of the game, including 10 in the second period alone, both teams had numerous power play opportunities. Ohio State, however, was only able to convert once on a score from Schepers.

With the weekend’s matchups in the books, Ohio State moves to 10-4-4 on the season, including 6-3-3 in conference play. The Buckeyes have a break this week before they head to Las Vegas for a two-game series with Princeton Dec. 14-15.

Women’s volleyball wraps up season with two-game road trip

Ohio State women’s volleyball rounded out its 2019 season with a road trip to the Big Ten West over the weekend. The Buckeyes posted a 3-1 sweep over Iowa Friday night in Iowa City, led by freshman Gabby Gonzales’ 19 kills. Senior Madison Smeathers added 13 kills of her own on the night. However, the Buckeyes weren’t as successful Saturday night when they traveled to Lincoln to take on No. 6 Nebraska. Ohio State lost in three sets, but was paced once again by Gonzales’ 10 kills.

The Buckeyes finished the season 15-17 overall, including 8-12 in conference play.

Field hockey takes home postseason honors

While Ohio State field hockey’s season has come to an end (and field hockey across the board, as North Carolina took home its second-straight NCAA Tournament title), the Buckeyes are still being recognized for their play this season by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association. Freshman midfielder Mackenzie Allessie took home Division I First-Team All-West Region honors, while senior midfielder Esther Clotet Alsina was recognized with second-team honors. Allessie and Alsina were No. 1 and 2 respectively for the Buckeyes in total goals, respectively, with Allessie totaling 16 and Alsina adding nine of her own.

These honors are particularly fitting, as Alsina has been a leader for the Buckeyes throughout her tenure at Ohio State, and is now passing the torch to Allessie, who was nothing short of outstanding in her freshman campaign in Columbus.

The Buckeyes certainly have a lot to look forward to next season. Despite the loss of Alsina, Ohio State brings back a strong rising sophomore class that features Allessie along with Sarah Charlie, who had five goals this season, and rising senior Nikki Trzaska, who had seven.

Women’s golf adds to talented recruiting class

In other off-season news, the Ohio State women’s golf team added another elite recruit to its 2020 class. Emily Hummer, an Upper Arlington native, is one of the top golfers in Ohio, finishing with first team All-Ohio honors twice in her high school career.