ATHENS, Ohio – Ohio Soccer picked up its third straight win in exciting fashion on Friday afternoon, earning a hard-fought 1-0 victory over the visiting Niagara Purple Eagles. The win was Ohio’s third in a row, a streak achieved Friday for the first time in more than five seasons.

Senior midfielder Cathryn Rogers (Etobicoke, Ontario) scored the game’s lone goal, finding the back of the net on a free kick in the 59th minute. Rogers has now scored Ohio’s last five goals and has accounted for 83 percent of the Bobcats’ scoring output in 2012. Throughout her career in the Green and White, Rogers has paced the Bobcats to an 8-2 mark when she finds the back of the net.

“It was good to see a lot of shots but we were disappointed with the final score,” said Head Coach Stacy Strauss. “I think that when we have that many chances we just need to be more proficient in finishing them.”

Mattie Liston (Lakewood, Ohio) earned her third consecutive shutout, stopping all three shots which came her way. The Bobcat defense has been quite strong in its last few outings, having now posted a 315-minute shutout streak.

Ohio peppered Niagara throughout the match, outshooting the Purple Eagles by a 24-10 margin. The Bobcats hit eight of their shots on target compared to only three for Niagara. Freshman Holly Harris (Batavia, Ohio) led the way in the shot column, hitting three total attempts, all of which were on goal.

The first half was a very exciting back-and-forth affair, with each team getting a number of opportunities at goal. Ohio fired an impressive 16 shots in the first 45 minutes while Niagara mustered seven of its own. The Bobcats hit a number of theirs on target, testing the Purple Eagles’ goalkeeper on four separate occasions. Mattie Liston did well also, stopping both shots which came her way.

Freshman Lauren Haley (Charlestown, Ind.) had a strong first half, peppering the Niagara defense with three total shots in just 19 minutes of play. Haley’s shot on goal in the 34th minute marked the first of her career.

Rogers kept up her streak of unbelievable play just a few minutes into the second half, finding the back of the net with a well taken free kick from 25 yards out. The senior stepped up and struck the ball hard, beating goalkeeper Claire Feiertag in the 59th minute. The goal was the 11th of her career, fifth of the season and fourth in just three matches.

The Bobcats were able to close things out from this point, threatening on multiple occasions to find the second goal but not allowing many scoring chances for the visitors.

Ohio will next be in action on Sunday, Sept. 9 when Cleveland State comes to town. The Bobcats and Vikings will kick off at 1 p.m. from Chessa Field.

Ohio Starting XI (Numerically): Mattie Liston (GK), Maggie Murnane, Cathryn Rogers, Paige Howard, Erin Feeney, Veronica Rock, Erin Schwenke, Natalie Bechtel, Holly Harris, Gabby Hausfeld, Grace Campbell

Goals:
Ohio – Cathryn Rogers 5 (Unassisted – free kick) 59’