Soccer team takes out OU in critical final game of season

BRIAN JAMES SMITH

Kent State Madison Helterbran competes for the ball against a Northern Illiouns player at Zoeller Field on Oct. 19. Kent State lost the match 0-1. Photo by Brian Smith.

The soccer team will determine their spot in the Mid-American Conference Championship at 3:00 p.m. against Ohio at Zoeller Field.

“It’s always a battle for a MAC East team. Our games have always been close, and we’re expecting the same on Thursday,” assistant coach Pat Sweeney said. “We’re at home, so we’re pretty excited that we get to finish a good home stand here and hopefully we get a win.”

The Flashes split the past weekend with a loss against Northern Illinois and a win against Toledo. With a 11-4-2 overall and 6-3-1 conference record, Kent State is looking to defeat Ohio for a higher seed in the MAC tournament to have a chance to play the quarterfinal match at home.

Junior Jaclyn Dutton said the team has to settle down and play their game to beat Ohio.

“It being on our home field, we obviously want to end with a win and put us in a good place in the play offs,” she said.

The Ohio Bobcats have a 3-5-1 conference record and 8-8-1 overall. The Bobcats lost to Toledo 2-1 and defeated Northern Illinois 1-0 last weekend.

“To have a home game for the MAC tournament would be huge — give us an advantage, a home field advantage,” Dutton said. “This is where we’re comfortable at, where we’ve got a lot of wins.”

Contact Erika Brun at [email protected].