WOOSTER, Ohio - In their first appearance in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Tournament in six years, the Wittenberg Tigers endured an unprecedented 19-hour rain delay before falling 14-10 to Kenyon in the semifinals.
The Tigers ended the 2009 season with a 7-7 overall record, including a mark of 3-3 in the NCAC regular season. After tying for third place with Denison and Ohio Wesleyan, the Tigers earned the No. 3 seed on tiebreaker criteria to earn the right to face Kenyon, the No. 2 seed, in a game hosted by regular season champion Wooster. The Ladies improved to 12-4 overall and advanced to face the top-seeded Scots in Sunday's championship game.
The rain delay was ordered after Wooster defeated Denison in Friday's first semifinal and then Wittenberg and Kenyon slogged through the first half on in rapidly deteriorating field conditions. Coaches of both teams, game officials and administrators at Wooster decided to suspend the semifinal with the score 7-4 in favor of the Ladies at halftime.
The two teams reconvened under much different weather circumstances on Saturday, but Kenyon held onto its lead to move on in the postseason.
Offensively, seniors Lizzie Amorello (Sutton, Mass./Worcester Academy), Megan Meige (Columbus, Ohio/DeSales) and Beth Vonderbrink (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) each showed the way with a pair of scores in the game. Amorello and Meige added assists as well.
After taking a 4-1 lead in the first half, Kenyon stormed back to score the last six goals before intermission. After a goal by senior Cait Mather (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mason) to start the final 30 minutes, the Ladies put the game out of reach with six of the next eight scores.
The Tiger defense was sparked by senior Hannah Fox (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral), who led Wittenberg with four ground balls. Fox and Meige earned NCAC All-Tournament nods for their performances in the match against the Ladies.