Henry Schneiderman
Sports Editor
Last Saturday, April 19, the Fighting Scot women’s lacrosse team added another victory to their historic season, taking down the Wittenberg University Tigers in Springfield, Ohio. Coming off the heels of an incredible run, the Scots banded together to deliver a dominant performance to place them 15-1 on the season. After a hard fought game, Wooster pulled away 15-5 in a showdown that earned them the gold.
“It was great to see so many people succeeding in the Witt game,” defender and team captain Lexi Sarne ’25 said. “Nine people scored and they were all amazing.”
The match began decidedly in the Scots’ favor — Kaitlyn McBride ’25 opened the game scoring off an unassisted finish less than a minute into play. This effort was followed soon after by a goal from Kenzie Morris ’25, who doubled the team’s lead in the first 5 minutes. After these efforts, the score remained stagnant for a moment as each team put forth an assertive defensive effort. This drought was then quenched with a score by Sophia Mellis ’26 to wrap up the first period of play, 3-0.
Wittenberg responded to Wooster’s offensive success early in the second quarter as the team placed one in the goal to open up the period’s scoring. This retaliation was short-lived, as shortly after Priya Nehria ’26 fired a shot past the Tigers’ keeper to place the score 4-1. This kicked off a 3-goal streak for the Scots when Lizzie Hardy ’26 scored just seconds later and Morris found the back of the net to double the team’s goal tally. This streak was interrupted by a Wittenberg finish that was overshadowed by Rowan Pilon ’28, scoring twice in the quarter’s final minute to extend Wooster’s lead to 8-2 going into the half.
The second half proved similar to the first as Wooster came out firing, opening the third quarter with a goal from Bella Woodbury ’26 off an assist from Nehria. This effort continued a few minutes later as Hardy found her second of the night off a free-position shot to net the Scots’ tenth of the night. The Tigers bit back with a finish a few seconds later but were denied a comeback once again, as Mizan Jacobs ’28 and Mellis scored 2 more for the team off assists from Cassidy Driscoll ’28 and Pilon respectively. A Wittenberg score in the period’s final moments ended the quarter’s scoring efforts.
The game’s final quarter began with the competition’s first consecutive Wittenberg score as the Tigers placed one in the back of the net for their final goal of the game. This effort was shortly followed by a Pilon score to grab her third hat trick of the season. A finish from Woodbury off a Morris assist and a final score from Driscoll from a free-position shot rounded out Wooster’s scoring and left the game a decisive Scots victory, 15-5.
Wooster’s triumph over Wittenberg was one made possible by the combined efforts of the team that led to a number of highlight performances. Notably, Pilon’s hat trick was followed by a pair of goals from Morris, Hardy, Mellis and Woodbury. The Scots additionally presented impressive offensive transitions as they completed all 26 clears that they encountered while simultaneously only turning the ball over 10 times, the team’s lowest tally since mid-March.
Furthermore, the Scots smothered the Tigers on the shooting front, putting up 40 shots to Wittenberg’s 20. On the defensive end, Morris commanded the field, amassing 2 career highs of 13 ground balls and 13 draw controls. The Scots additionally triumphed in ground balls 47-31. In the net, Audrey Richardson ’27 recorded the win with 3 saves before Brooke Benjamin ’27 came in and recorded a career high of 6 saves to keep the score in Wooster’s favor.
“I think the success we’ve had has been building over the last few seasons,” Woodbury said. “We have some really talented upperclassmen who have been improving for years, and I think it’s all coming together right now. Our defensive unit is very experienced, and our attack is so diverse that it’s difficult to scout us. We had 9 different players score against Wittenberg which really demonstrates how lethal every one of us can be.”
With this result, the Scots have solidified themselves as one of this season’s top contenders for the North Coast Athletic Conference’s (NCAC) title and will have made a bid for the conference crown against the conference’s only other unbeaten team, Denison University, on Tuesday.
“As for Denison, we’re all psyched to be in the position we are in.” Woodbury said, “As a junior, this will be my first appearance in the NCAC tournament, and the seniors haven’t gone since their freshman year. We all agree that if there’s any squad that can beat Denison, it’s us. We’re ready to give it everything we have and hopefully come away with the title.”
By this article’s publication, the women’s lacrosse team will have played their final game of the season against Denison on Tuesday, April 22. No matter the result, congratulations to the team on an incredibly successful season. Go Scots!
The game against Denison on Tuesday, April 22 was the Scots’ final regular season game. Only four conference matches remain in the NCAC –– with the final games wrapping up on Saturday.
