Ohio State Blasts Bradley, 4-0

Buckeyes advance to College Cup

Dec. 9, 2007

COLUMBUS, Ohio (ohiostatebuckeyes.com) - Scoring four goals in a 12-minute span during the second half, Ohio State shut out Bradley, 4-0, Sunday in rain-soaked Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium to advance to its first NCAA College Cup next weekend in Cary, N.C. Continuing to build on their best season in program history, the Buckeyes are now 16-3-5 and will face Massachusetts at 7 p.m. Friday at SAS Soccer Park.

Ohio State, Big Ten champion and the No. 5 seed in the tournament, is now unbeaten in its last 14 games (11-0-3) to double the previous school record for the longest unbeaten streak, while also improving two other school records - one for wins (16) and the other for shutouts (14).

Bradley, which overcame the tragic death of redshirt freshman Danny Dahlquist a day before preseason practice started, ends its season16-6-4, setting a program record for wins. Both teams were playing in their first NCAA `Elite Eight' appearance.

The four-goal win is the most lopsided NCAA tournament victory for the Buckeyes in nine games all-time and the 4-0 win marks the largest margin of victory in any home game since 2001. Ohio State wraps up its home schedule this season with a program-record 8-1-1 mark at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.

Ohio State senior goalkeeper Casey Latchem had four saves in his 14th shutout of the season and 26th of his career to build on both of his school records.

After a scoreless first half in which Ohio State outshot Bradley 8-4, it appeared as if one goal might be enough to win the game in the steady rain. The Buckeyes got that goal at the 57:20 mark when senior Xavier Balc converted a penalty kick after junior Geoff Marsh was dragged down in the penalty area while making a one-on-one run.

That penalty kick would prove to be Balc's fifth game-winning goal of the season and 11th of his career.

But Bradley had overcome one-goal and two-goal deficits their last two games in wins at Indiana and Maryland, so the Buckeyes kept applying pressure. That resulted in a goal at the 62:47 mark by Marsh, another goal by Balc at the 64:11 mark and a goal by sophomore Andrew Magill at the 69:04 mark.

Up 1-0, OSU junior midfielder Danny Irizarry slotted the ball to Marsh, who settled it 15 yards out and blasted it into the far corner of the net to put the Buckeyes up, 2-0. Less than two minutes later, junior Patrick Roan drove down the right flank and crossed the ball into the penalty area, where Balc was waiting and headed it in to give Ohio State a three-goal cushion. The final goal came when Bradley turned the ball over in front of its own net and Magill slammed it home.

The Buckeyes outshot the Braves 18-10 for the match and had eight shots on goal compared to four for Bradley.