QUICK HITS
- Cleveland State had advantages in shots, shots on goal, faceoffs, clearing percentage and man-up percentage
- The Vikings also had fewer turnovers, committing 11 to the Buckeyes' 14
- Junior Danny Tesler won 12 of 23 faceoffs against Ohio State preseason All-American Justin Inacio
- Freshman Ryan Haigh and Gabe Reno both had multi-goal outings in their collegiate debuts
- Junior Tristen Copeland added two goals, his seventh career multi-goal performance
- Junior Jared Stepka had his first-career multi-assist game and also added two ground balls
- Sophomore Michael Wilson had his sixth career multi-assist game and his 11th multi-point game
- It was the smallest margin of defeat against a nationally ranked opponent for the third-year Viking program
GAME STORY
The Cleveland State University lacrosse team had advantages in many facets of the game but came up on the short end of a 12-9 decision to nationally ranked Ohio State in each team's season opener Saturday afternoon inside Woody Hayes Athletic Complex.
CSU outshot OSU, 37-30, and also had three fewer turnovers than the Buckeyes.
Junior Danny Tesler did all he could to help win possession for the Vikings, winning over half of the faceoffs against a formidable foe. Tesler won 12 of 23 faceoffs when matched up with the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Tesler added a goal and four ground balls on the day.
True freshman Ryan Haigh and Gabe Reno both added two goals in their collegiate debuts and helped lead the CSU offense. Junior Tristen Copeland added a pair of strikes as well on just two shots.
Both goalies stopped the first three shots on goal that they saw. After junior Brandon Ruditz caused a turnover, the Vikings struck first with an unassisted tally by junior Nick Wendel.
Ohio State responded by scoring on each of its next three possessions to open up a small margin of breathing room. The Buckeyes would then lead by a margin of one to three goals until the fourth quarter.
After the third OSU goal, the Vikings were hit with a personal foul. However, Tesler won the ensuing faceoff to allow the Vikings to kill off the OSU man-up chance, sending the game into the second quarter.
CSU scored on its first possession of the second quarter, with Wilson feeding Copeland with the Vikings a man advantage.
The Buckeyes scored the next two goals, the first off a failed clear and the next immediately following the faceoff.
Sophomore Derek Radke stopped the bleeding on CSU's next possession before Haigh opened his collegiate account about five minutes later off a man-up feed from Wilson.
OSU added a goal in the final minute of the half to take a 6-4 lead into the break.
The Buckeyes scored on their first possession of the second half, but freshman Gabe Reno had a moment to shine as he scored unassisted goals on CSU's next two possessions to make it a 7-6 game.
Cleveland State won the ensuing faceoff, but its shot to tie the game was saved. OSU then cleared and scored on its next two possessions after winning the faceoff in between.
Tesler followed by winning the faceoff and scoring 11 seconds later. After two empty possessions by each team, the Buckeyes would score the final goal of the third quarter.
Ohio State scored the first two goals of the fourth quarter and threatened to pull away. However, a man-up tally by Haigh and Copeland goal, both assisted by Stepka, cut the Viking deficit to just three.
With the clock winding down, Ohio State won the ensuing faceoff and took a shot clock violation to help run the clock down, effectively sealing the victory.
Wilson now has points in each of his 14 collegiate starts and tallied his sixth career multi-assist game, the most among active Vikings. Wilson and Copeland each posted his 11th career multi-point Saturday.
Redshirt sophomore Caleb Espinoza and sophomore Stephen Russo each made five saves in 30 minutes of action in the cage.
Cleveland State will play a second straight Big Ten opponent to open the season as it opens its home schedule next Saturday, Feb. 9, against Michigan.