Ohio 2, Marshall 0
Boxscore
ATHENS, Ohio – Playing at Chessa Field in front of fans for the first time since the 2019 season, the Ohio Bobcats (2-0-0) topped Marshall 2-0 in its 2021 home opener Thursday (Aug. 26). It was the the team's second straight shutout to start the 2021 campaign. Paige Knorr and Shae Robertson each scored a goal in the first half to lead the Bobcats' effort against the Thundering Herd.  

Robertson struck first, knocking in a goal in the 19th minute to give the Bobcats a 1-0 lead over Marshall. Fast forward to the 33rd minute where Regan Berg set up the second goal, with Paige Knorr finding the back of the net to give the Bobcats a 2-0 advantage going into halftime.  

Following the intermission, the Bobcats held strong defensively in the second half, blocking any attempts Marshall made at a comeback.  

"It's always good to open up the home season with a win, securing this win is great," head coach Aaron Rodgers said. "Marshall played a great game, especially in the second half, meaning our team had to be quicker on the ball and defend a bit stronger." 

Goalkeeper Sam Wexell played all 90 minutes, making a total of three saves. Another strong performance by Wexell resulted in her second consecutive shutout. 

"Sam has been such an awesome teammate and part of our program," Rodgers said. "This is her time to play, and I'm proud of her for all the work she has done and the patience she's had to be in this position this season." 

The Bobcats outshot Marshall 20-14, with 10 of the Bobcats' shots coming in the first half. The match turned into a battle of defense, as Marshall pushed back in the second half, but Ohio's early attacking success ultimately sealed the victory. 
 

Northern Illinois 4, Chicago State 1
Boxscore
DEKALB, Ill. – Four different players scored as the Northern Illinois University women's soccer team topped Chicago State, 4-1, on Thursday evening (Aug. 26) at the NIU Soccer Complex. Haley Hoppe (Austin, Texas/Rouse), Claudia Muessig (Paw Paw, Mich./Paw Paw), Amanda Czerniak(South Elgin, Ill./St. Charles North) and Julia Neary (Vernon Hills, Ill./Vernon Hills) each scored to help the Huskies earn back-to-back home wins. 

"It is a great step forward for us to put together two games back-to-back and get the win," said NIU head coach Julie Colhoff. "A glaring thing we definitely have to work on is how we tighten up our defense after we put a goal in the back of the net. Moving off this game it gives us a lot to work on, a lot to build off of but also identify some things we want to fine tune." 

It took the Huskies less than 11 minutes to open the scoring as Hoppe netted her third goal of the season. Kierah Meier(Sycamore, Ill./Sycamore) played a ball from just inside her own half into the run of Hoppe who took a pair of touches before firing a shot past Chicago State goalkeeper Alexa Seiler to give the Huskies a 1-0 lead. 

Just two minutes later, NIU was whistled for a foul in the box and Sara Quevedo stepped up and slotted home the penalty to pull the Cougars level.

At the quarter-hour mark, the Huskies nearly went back in front as a cross from Czerniak found its way to Grace Louis(Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) at the back post who clipped a shot over the bar. 

Three minutes from halftime, Kylee Hermeyer (Dixon, Ill./Dixon) picked out Muessig on the edge of the box and the Paw Paw, Mich., native tucked a low shot past Seiler and inside the back post to help the Huskies restore their one-goal lead. The goal was the first for Muessig in her collegiate career. 

After the interval, NIU was straight back on the attack and Czerniak doubled the Huskie advantage in the 48th minute. Hoppe moved past a defender down the left side just before the goal line and fired in a low cross toward the penalty spot, Czerniak took a touch and slipped the ball under Seiler to give NIU a 3-1 lead. 

The Huskies added a fourth from the penalty spot in the 74th minute. Neary was taken down inside the box and took responsibility for the penalty herself, rolling the shot from 12 yards beyond Seiler to give NIU a three-goal advantage. 

Sadie McGill (Fort Worth, Texas/North Texas) made six saves while earning her second consecutive victory for NIU, Seiler made six stops for Chicago State. The Huskies outshot the Cougars in the contest, 19-9. 

NIU will conclude its current three-game homestand on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 29, when the Huskies host Eastern Kentucky. Kickoff against the Colonels is scheduled for 1 p.m. ?

Toledo 6, Detroit Mercy 1
Boxscore

TOLEDO, Ohio - Toledo captured a 6-1 victory in the home opener Thursday night (Aug. 26) over Detroit Mercy. Ellie Pool got the Rockets going in the first half with the first of two scores for her on the night, before Toledo went off for five second-half goals. 

The win advances the Rockets to 1-0-2 on the season heading into Sunday's (Aug. 29) home game against Dayton. 

"I am proud of our team tonight," said Head Coach T.J. Buchholz. "Anytime you can explode for six goals against a team at this level is outstanding. I thought Detroit made things difficult for us in the first half, but our players really adapted well in the second half. When Detroit tied the game, I wasn't sure how this team would respond. But this team really has a grit and competitiveness that is fun to coach. Hopefully we can take this confidence into Sunday's match against a very good Dayton team.

Kent State 4, Youngstown State 1
Boxscore
(KENT, Ohio) - On Thursday night, the Kent State University women's soccer team defeated Youngstown State, 4-1. This puts the Golden Flashes at 2-1 thus far in the season, while it drops the Penguins to 0-2.

The story of the night was the outpouring of offensive from the Flashes. Having only scored two goals in as many games heading into the affair, head coach Rob Marinaro's team doubled that amount against YSU, putting up four goals on the night and doing it with power and determination. Redshirt senior forward Cameron Shedenhelm put on a show for Kent State, scoring a goal on a penalty kick in the 20th minute, scoring another in the 80th minute, and picking up an assist prior to both goals, giving her five total points in the game.

Shedenhelm's assist was to senior forward Khyla Porter, who scored her goal in the 18th minute to give Kent State the 1-0 advantage. After Shedenhelm's goal, the scoreboard read 2-0 KSU at halftime. Youngstown State got its only goal of the night in the 53rd minute on a shot by Chloe Casello, with Lianna Van Sice on the assist.

But the Penguins' comeback attempt was futile. Freshman midfielder Alisa Arthur got an unassisted goal for the Flashes in the 65th minute, before Shedenhelm picked up her second goal roughly 15 minutes later to seal the deal (assisted by redshirt senior defender Karly Hellstrom).

Kent State topped Youngstown State in most categories, including shots attempted (18-7), corner kicks attempted (5-3), and fouls (7-9). Two Penguins players were given yellow cards, and one Kent State player was as well.

Now the Flashes wait a week for their next game, Thursday at home against Canisius. That game is set to take place at 6 P.M.

 
"We allowed Saint Francis to dictate the tempo in the first half, but we came out in the second half and displayed a much better performance, one that we will build on as we turn our attention to improving for Sunday," Akron head coach Noreen Herlihycommented.
 
The opening stanza was marked by a defensive effort for both teams, one that resulted in a combined three shots in the first half. Saint Francis made its shots count scoring what proved to be the game-winning tally in the 22nd minute (21:20) when Rita Kendziora found the back of the net.
 
The Red Flashes took a 1-0 lead into the intermission before extending their margin to 2-0 at the 46:23 mark when Paige Theobald connected on her first goal of the season.
 
Redshirt junior Aislinn Meaney (Ennis, Ireland) cut the Zips' deficit to 2-1 in the 52nd minute (51:39) when she scored her first goal of the season.
 
Less than three minutes later a goal from Lauren Persichetty at the 54:33 mark pushed the lead to 3-1 for Saint Francis.
 
Junior Carly Pcholinsky (South Park, Pa.) capped the scoring in the affair finding the back of the net for the Zips in the 75th minute (74:03) off an assist from freshman Annabel Thomas (Canonsburg, Pa.).
 
Sparked by a 10-6 edge in second-half shots, Akron finished the contest owning a 10-9 margin in overall shots, including 7-5 in shots on goal.
 
Meany collected a game-high three shots, while freshman Caitlin Bruni (Canal Fulton, Ohio) added a career-best two shots. Tomke Dziesiaty led the Red Flashes with a team-high three shots.

Freshman goalkeeper Penelope Cuirinier (Mionnay, France) registered a game-high four saves for the Zips.

 
"I am really proud of our game today in two-thirds of the field," Head Coach Scott Hall said. "The final piece for our team is our decisions in the final third of the game and not being able to create many quality chances. Thankfully, our group continues to train and compete every day and stick together through adversity."
 
Senior Lindsey Shira (New Baltimore, Mich.-Anchor Bay) and freshmen Lexy Alston (Amherst, Ohio-Marion L. Steele), Ashley Schneider (Johnstown, Ohio-Johnstown Monroe) and Maddie O'Farrell (Haslett, Mich.-Lansing Catholic) all recorded a shot for the Eagles in the contest.
 
Sophomore Rebecca Przybylo (Canton, Mich.-Plymouth) made her second collegiate start in net for EMU on Thursday. The Canton, Mich. native faced 17 total shots, tallying five saves, including two impressive punch saves to keep the contest within one score.
 
The five saves on Thursday match Przybylo's total saves in the 2019 season (two games played).
 
Przybylo played full time (90 minutes), along with senior Haley Tausend (Barrington, Ill.-Barrington) and junior Sarah Ash (South Lyon, Mich.-South Lyon). Freshman Jamie Lefebvre (London, Ontario-A.B. Lucas Secondary) led the Eagles with 55 minutes off the bench.
 
Colgate led Eastern Michigan in total shots (17-4), shots on goal (7-0), and corner kick opportunities (8-0). The Raiders held possession for 53 percent of the match.
 
The Raiders scored what would be the deciding score in the 23rd minute on a shot from the top of the box that went into the lower left corner of the net. Colgate recorded 11 total shots (four on goal) in the first 45 minutes, while the Eagles tallied one shot in the first half.
 
EMU finishes its stint in New York with a meeting against Syracuse on Sunday, Aug. 29, inside SU Soccer Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. The match will be streamed via ACC Network Extra.

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – A goal in the 51st minute was the difference on Thursday as Michigan State handed Central Michigan a 1-0 soccer loss in the Chippewas' home opener at the CMU Soccer Complex.
 
The Chippewas, who opened with a 4-3 loss last week at Marquette, are 0-2. MSU is 3-0 and has yet to surrender a goal this season.
 
"We've got a lot of grit," CMU Coach Jeremy Groves said. "I think that's a really good sign, especially when at times we had maybe seven or eight sophomores and freshmen on the field. We're pretty young, but I like this group; they work hard."
 
The Spartans outshot the Chippewas, 16-12. Both teams had three shots on goal. CMU goalkeeper Allison LaPoint made two saves.
 
Amanda Britain and Elizabeth Chlystun each had a shot on goal in the first half, and Megan Logue had one in the second half for CMU.
 
The Chippewas go to Ann Arbor on Sunday, Aug. 29 (1 p.m.), to take on the Michigan (3-0).

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Host Ohio State University scored the go-ahead goal with just over 12 minutes left in the second half, and the Buckeyes went on to a 3-1 win over the Bowling Green State University women's soccer team Thursday night (Aug. 26). The non-conference match was held at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.

Kayla Fischer scored a pair of goals for the Buckeyes (2-1-0), and assisted on Chloe Delyser's winning marker.

After a scoreless first half, Fischer got the hosts on the board in the 55th minute. But, sophomore Lacee Bethea quickly answered for the Falcons (0-2-0), tying the score just 2:05 after Fischer's goal. Junior Katie Cox assisted on the Bethea goal.

The match remained tied until just 12:10 remained in regulation, when Delyser scored what proved to be the winning goal. Fischer provided some insurance just 20 seconds later.

Lil Berg made four saves in goal for the third consecutive match. Bailey Kolinski had two stops for the home side.