SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — For the first time since 2002, the Wittenberg Tigers won their third straight game by topping visiting Mount St. Joseph, 14-3 at Edwards-Maurer Field.
If not for a season-opening overtime loss to RPI in Clearwater, Fla., on March 7, the Tigers would be unbeaten through the first third of the 2007 season. Wittenberg will be trying to match the four-game win streak that the 2002 team posted when the Tigers travel to St. Vincent on Saturday.
The Tigers got off to a strong start with a goal by freshman Jeff Capella (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne) and stretched the lead out to 7-0 by halftime. In the second half, the Tigers emptied much of the bench before finally allowing three MSJ scores in the fourth quarter.
Winning lacrosse starts in the defensive end, and the Tigers picked up a strong performance from junior Andy Shively (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington), who recorded eight saves while allowing two goals before giving way to freshman Ben Van Vranken (North Canton, Ohio/Hoover) in the fourth quarter. It was Shively's first start of the season.
Offensively, the Tigers spread things around, starting with Capella's three goals. His scoring tally was matched by sophomore Sam Henderson (Potomac, Md./Thomas S. Wootten) with three goals, while freshman Ted Winders (Western Springs, Ill./Lyons Township) was the game leader in total points with two goals and two assists.
The Tigers outshot Mount St. Joseph, a first-year program, 38-20 and won the ground ball battle by a 48-25 margin. Junior Mike Provost (Columbus, Ohio/Hilliard Davidson) was the high man in ground balls for the Tigers.