SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers sent a stellar group of seniors out on a high note with a 10-4 victory over visiting North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) rival Kenyon.
The win snapped a three-year losing streak against the Lords and a two-game skid in the 2015 season for the Tigers. Wittenberg now has the inside track on one of four coveted NCAC Tournament spots with records of 5-5 overall and 3-2 in the league.
Kenyon fell to 6-5 overall and 3-2 in the NCAC.
Wittenberg opened the scoring with two goals in the first five minutes, and by halftime the lead had expanded to 7-3 in favor of the Tigers. Wittenberg then put together a nearly perfect defensive second half, holding the Lords without a goal until the final 42 seconds, all while scoring three times to put the game out of reach.
The Tigers held a 43-35 advantage in shots, and Wittenberg held a narrow 9-7 edge in face-offs. The Tigers had two more turnovers in the game, which led to four more ground balls for the Lords.
Individually, five different Tigers found the back of the net in the game, led by senior Ryan Spitzer (Lincolnshire, Ill./Stevenson) with three goals. Sean Kelleher (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest), junior Andrew Fuss (New Albany, Ohio/Gahanna Lincoln) and senior Matt Hugdahl (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) added two goals apiece, and junior Thomas Fuss (New Albany, Ohio/Gahanna Lincoln) contributed one score. Thomas Fuss dished out two assists, while Andrew Fuss and sophomore Austin Brady (Pickerington, Ohio/North) each contributed one helper.
Also of note, senior Riley Boehm (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) led the Tigers in ground balls with five, while Kelleher added three. In goal, senior Jay Dolan (Andover, Mass./Phillips Andover) was outstanding with 14 saves.
Before the game, the Tigers' senior class was celebrated, including Lewis Thompson (Sandy Hook, Conn./Newtown), John Haeling (Briarcliff, N.Y./Briarcliff), Nick Bergenty (Bridgewater, N.J./Bridgewater-Raritan), Brett Wilson (Lenaxa, Kan./St. James Academy), Boehm, Hugdahl, Spitzer and Dolan.
Written By: Ryan Maurer