Shootout Goes Denison's Way In Thrilling NCAC Battle

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers may have fallen to 0-6 on the 2015 season, but they also may have found some important resolve in a 4-3 shootout defeat at the hands of North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) rival Denison.

Wittenberg trailed 2-0 at halftime but stormed back with three goals in the second half to force an unlikely overtime contest. After the two teams battled through two additional periods without resolution, the Tigers and Big Red went to a shootout.

It took six rounds of penalty strokes to finally present a winner. Freshman Robin Gevers (Beilen, The Netherlands/Dr. Nassau College) was the lone Tiger to convert on her shot, while Denison got a pair of scores from Britta Marden to take the win.

Denison improved to 2-0 in the NCAC, while Wittenberg fell to 0-2 in the league.

Wittenberg outshot Denison by a 16-4 margin in regulation, but the Big Red scored on three of their four attempts on goal. In the overtime periods, the field flipped, with Denison holding a 15-2 shots advantage. The game featured a whopping 27 penalty corners, with Denison awarded 16 to Wittenberg's 11.

Senior Paige Vanerstrom (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) led Wittenberg in shots with five, while freshman Blaine Donnelly (Hanover, Md./Archbishop Spalding) finished with four and sophomore Riley Trexler (Louisville, Ky./Atherton) added three. Vanerstrom made good on two of her shots in the game, while Donnelly contributed one score.

Both teams were credited with a whopping three defensive saves, in addition to 10 saves for Denison goalkeeper Ellen Westfall and 14 saves for Wittenberg junior Sarah Brownell (Ocnomowoc, Wis./University Lake School).

Written By: Ryan Maurer