SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers were ambushed at the outset of Wednesday's North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) opener against Denison, and the slow start cost them in a 10-6 loss.
Denison, which improved to 4-2 overall, outscored Wittenberg 6-0 in the first quarter and held on from there. Wittenberg, which dropped to 4-2 overall, outshot and outscored the Big Red in each of the final three quarters, but it wasn't enough to overcome the deficit.
While Wittenberg finished with a 35-29 shots advantage, the Big Red won several other key statistical areas, including ground balls (31-27) and face-offs (13-6). Most importantly, Denison goalkeeper Alex Baruch played a stellar game, coming up with nine saves and rarely allowing the Tigers an open look at the goal.
The Tigers were paced offensively by sophomore Ted Winders (Western Springs, Ill./Lyons Township) with three goals and one assist, while freshman Mitch Cohagan (Pickerington, Ohio/North) added two goals and two assists and sophomore Jeff Capella (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne) finished with one goal and one assist.
Defensively, the star of the night may well have been freshman Danny Johnson (Cincinnati, Ohio/Indian Hill), who finished with a game-high seven ground balls. Freshman goalkeeper Mark DeOliveira (East Hanover, NJ/East Hanover) was solid with six saves between the pipes.
The Tigers now have 10 days to rest up for their next big NCAC battle, a road trip to Kenyon on Saturday, April 5.