DAYTON (OH) — Two first half goals by senior Evan McCreary and a second half tally by Abe Keller paced the Dayton Flyers to a satisfying 3-2 victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes Friday evening at Baujan Field. The season opener for both teams drew 1,148 fans as UD starts the season 1-0 while OSU falls to 0-1.

The Flyers got off to solid start after kickoff and didn’t take long to put a goal on the scoreboard. McCreary found the net from 15 yards out in the 10th minute to put UD up 1-0 against their in-state rivals.

From there on, UD showed very good patience and a solid work rate in the middle of the field, despite the Buckeyes’ intentions of controlling possession and working things methodically up field.

Dayton maintained a solid resistance however, helped in part by excellent challenges for 50/50 balls both on the ground and in the air. While UD’s execution in the offensive third was not shaping up as they intended, the Flyers made the most of their chances when they materialized.

McCreary put the Flyers up 2-0 in the 28th minute on a corner kick scrum toward the post. The ball knocked around and went in the net to put UD firmly in the driver’s seat.

Over the remaining 20 minutes of the first half, Dayton continued to get things done with decent hustle. Defensively, UD was organized and turned away the dangerous stuff when called upon. Freshman GK Chris Froschauer looked comfortable in goal and used his canon foot to change field possession on goal kicks or punts.

Dayton took the 2-0 lead into halftime, despite being out-shot 13-5.

Ohio State got exactly what they wanted on the re-start with a 25yd shot to the upper 90 of the far post to cut the Buckeye deficit to 2-1 just 46 seconds into the second half. Froschauer had little chance on the high-class shot, but the damage materialized from a lackluster loose-ball challenge in the middle third of the field that led to the Buckeye possession.

As quickly as things turned favorable for Ohio State, Dayton answered however with an even better long-distance blast from 35 yards out by Abe Keller. The tattooed shot found the upper 90 of the near post to restore the two-goal Flyer lead at 3-1 in the 48th minute.

Over the next 15 minutes, Dayton did extremely well to win most of the loose balls — especially in the air. Unable to gain the type of possession they had in the first half, the Buckeyes were chasing the balls and working hard to keep the deficit where it was. The Flyers had a couple great chances inside the box to add a fourth goal, but each time the ball squirted through the mixer and out the other side.

Ohio State answered in the 62nd on a goal nearly identical to their first. The upper 90 shot to the far post made the score 3-2 with a half hour still to play. The goal put the final outcome up for grabs once again, but more importantly changed the tenor of the match.

The last 30 minutes were most frustrating as Dayton lost their tempo and began to bunker, seemingly happy to play not to lose rather than playing to win. Players began stalling to run clock, and the referee began issuing yellow cards for the deliberately slow play. With so much of the match still to play, the posture of the team was not healthy. Ohio State took advantage.

The Buckeyes owned the last 25 minutes from a possession and loose ball perspective. Unable to control the ball and win loose change in the midfield, OSU pushed most of the run of play inside UD’s defensive half.

More stalling and step-slow efforts to 50/50 balls gave the Bucks many opportunities to find a third goal and tie the game in regulation. A bevy of crosses in the box, direct one-on-one attacking with dribble-drive, and poor clearances by the Flyers left many in attendance wondering if UD could hang on and preserve the win.

Fortunately Dayton did just enough, but it wasn’t because Ohio State lacked quality chances. In some respects, OSU went unrewarded for their gritty play in the last 20 minutes, but the Flyer back line and some timely goalkeeping by Froschauer held strong long enough to run the clock out.

For the match, OSU out-shot Dayton 27-14, while corner kicks favored the Bucks 7-4. The Flyers were issued five yellow cards on the evening — most of them for stalling.

Much like Thursday evening’s victory over #19 Boston University by the UD women’s soccer team, the UD men got the result they wanted in spite of the execution at times. Dayton did well to score three goals from just five overall shots on frame. Compared to last season when UD had trouble scoring at all, netting three tallies against a Big-10 in-state rival is promising and speaks to the offensive potential. Dayton more or less mailed in the last 30 minutes of play however and seemed to lack a confidence to just go out and beat the Buckeyes with sound soccer. The timid challenges and stalling tactics were a posture that carried over into UD’s run of play. And for some inexplicable reason, Flyer throw-ins were anemic in accuracy and purpose.

Still, Dayton got a big win and that counts for a lot. There’s no better way to start the season, especially since Head Coach Dennis Currier has plenty of things in the film room to grab the team’s attention in spite of the victory.

Dayton remains at home with a 5pm Sunday afternoon match against the Kentucky Wildcats.