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Redemption came early this season for the RedHawks.
In a rematch of the 2007 MAC championship game, Miami University defeated Ohio University 2-1, avenging its loss from less than a year ago.
"They took it from us last year," sophomore Christine Brightwell said. "It's our year, our time, and it felt really good getting payback."
Ohio owned a five-game win streak over the 'Hawks coming into Sunday's match, including the comeback title performance in which the Bobcats erased a 2-0 deficit.
OU won seven times out of the last 10 Battle of the Bricks games. This time around, however, Miami got the best of their cross-state, in-conference rival.
"I told our team that before the game, if it helps you to make it personal, then make it personal," head coach Jill Reeve told the Miami athletic department. "Whatever it takes to get you into that mode where we are fighting every minute. That is where we needed to be."
In the 20th minute of the game, sophomore midfielder Christine Brightwell buried a goal into the far post assisted from Marcum giving Miami a 1-0 lead.
"I was in the right spot at the right time," Brightwell said. "I got a good pass and after it tipped off the defender I put it in."
Two minutes later, the Bobcats responded with a goal off of a penalty corner to tie the game at one a piece.
Not dampened at all by the quick strike, the RedHawks went back down into Bobcat territory for another goal of their own. After several juke moves from senior midfielder Elizabeth Gilroy, she dished it off to junior forward Mary Hull for the score and a 2-1 lead that Miami held for the rest of the game.
"OU was giving me room," Gilroy said. "So I did a little flick and (Hull) finished it."
In a game that started to get very physical in the second half with three cards being handed out overall, the RedHawks kept a good demeanor to finish the game on top.
"They played as a team today, had a good time; it was a challenge and I'm proud with their efforts," Reeve said.
In the RedHawks' first game of the weekend, the Kent State University Golden Flashes scored just less than six minutes in, beating freshman goalie Abbey Huck in the upper right side of the goal.
For most of the first period, the Flashes played on Miami's half of the field. Neither team scored, however, despite nine total shots taken by both teams.
"Our corner execution was good," Reeve said. "We were just missing the cage by an inch."
In the 49th minute of the second period, the Flashes struck again to go up 2-0. After this, the RedHawks began to look like a new team.
"I asked the girls after the game about their play the last 15-17 minutes of the game because they played really well," Reeve said. "They decided that we should play the whole game like that."
In the 64th minute Junior Maggie Marcum, a midfielder, scored off a breakaway to pull the RedHawks within one point. However, after multiple scoring opportunities, including a few penalty corners, the RedHawks couldn't put another one of their seven shots of the game into the goal.
"Five players were playing great hockey," Reeve said. "But it's a team sport and you're exposed if all your players aren't playing hard … it could have been different if they had taken the game into their hands."
The RedHawks came out of the weekend with a record of 8-3 overall and 3-1 in the MAC. They finish their current three-game home stand Friday against Central Michigan University.
