Long road trip continues as CMU faces pair of skilled Ohio teams
Brian ManzulloThe field hockey team will continue its longest road trip of the season this weekend against Ohio University and Kent State.
The team plays the Ohio Bobcats at 3 p.m. Friday and then travels to Kent State to play the Golden Flashes at 1 p.m. Saturday.
CMU is expecting tough matches from both of its opponents this weekend.
"Both teams are good, and they will be very tough games," said coach Cristy Freese. "We have to come ready to be a lot tougher than both teams to get the victory."
The defending MAC Champion Bobcats went 3-0 against CMU last season, including a win in the MAC Tournament to end Central's season.
"I have respect for OU. One of the things that they do well is play defense," Freese said. "They have a quality goalkeeper, which is the key to their defense, and they have some quality people in the right positions to make a run at another championship."
Senior Samantha Sandham said CMU won't be intimidated by the defending-champion Bobcats.
"We are excited for every game, and we are excited to play MAC games," she said. "We are confident in our abilities, and I don't think intimidation will be a factor."
The Golden Flashes are no stranger to CMU. This meeting will be the 51st between the two teams. CMU holds an overall record of 13-37 against Kent State.
"Kent State has a different style of play," Freese said. "They have good quality players on the field that can score a lot of nice goals and they have a good passing game."
KSU is fresh off an upset victory on Sunday, defeating No. 20-ranked Albany 4-3 in double overtime. The Golden Flashes have played against a few other nationally-ranked opponents - No. 9 James Madison and No. 8 Virginia.
Both Ohio and Kent State were projected to finish higher than CMU in the preseason MAC Coaches Poll. Freese thinks a successful weekend will help CMU gain some respect around the conference.
"I think one of two wins out of the weekend is huge because they are both projected to finish above us," she said. "From the outside, people look at it and say Ohio and Kent would win, but if we can win games this weekend, then suddenly we are a contender and should be noticed."
CMU is coming of its most unproductive weekend of the season, failing to score a goal in two games. The team was blanked against Iowa and Boston University last weekend.
"We know that they are both two strong teams," Sandham said. "We have been working on things in practice, and we are rebuilding our confidence."
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