The Wittenberg field hockey team is off to another great start, this time posting a 5-1 overall record and a 2-1 mark in the North Coast Athletic Conference through the first few weeks of the 2004 season. Under the direction of first-year Head Coach Kiki Chesterton, the Tigers have turned up the offensive output while also getting a surprisingly strong defensive performance in recording three shutouts in the first three games of the season.
Much of the credit for the shutouts goes to a veteran defensive unit, led by 2003 all-conference and all-region standout Carrie Happ (Pittsburgh, Pa./Vincentian). The surprise has come in goal, where freshman Nicole Irvin (Gettysburg, Pa./Littletown) has allowed just four goals to rank among the league leaders with a goals against average of 0.86. She has stepped in seemlessly to replace two-time third-team All-American Jen Meyer, who is studying at Duke University this fall and is expected to retun in time for the softball season in the spring.
Offensively, Wittenberg is paced by sophomore Katy Barrett (Powell, Ohio/Watterson), the 2003 team leader in scoring who has 10 total points so far in 2004. Junior Julia Wickham (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview) has eight points.
The Tigers opened the season with shutouts over Ohio Wesleyan, DePauw and Rhodes. Then came a 5-1 win over Sewanee on Sept. 12 and a 2-1 defeat at arch-rival Denison on Sept. 15, the Tigers' last game for a week thanks flooding in Virginia associated with Hurricane Ivan that cancelled scheduled games against Washington College and the University of Mary Washington. Rounding things out, Wittenberg's offense exploded in a 6-1 win over Earlham on Wednesday.
Next up for the Tigers is a key NCAC tilt at home Saturday against Wooster. The Tigers and Scots were the top two teams in preseason conference balloting. The game will be a rematch of last year's NCAC Tournament finale, in which Wittenberg claimed a 1-0 overtime victory.
Round Up: Tigers Take Five Wins Over Just One Lost
Posted: Sep 24, 2004