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Lauren McMahon '13
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SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg women's soccer team cruised past visiting Capital Crusaders Sunday night, improving to 6-2-0 on the season following the 3-1 win. The Tigers went up 1-0 early and notched two second half goals to seal the deal.
The Tigers, riding their second three-game winning streak of the year, expanded their scoring column by one player late in the game when sophomore defender/forward Lauren E. McMahon (Loveland, Ohio/Ursuline) drove home her first score of the season.
With a 2-0 lead and eight minutes remaining in the contest, junior forward Megan Utter (Grand Rapids, Mich./East Grand Rapids) broke away from the pack at midfield and looked ahead. She found McMahon, who beat her lone defender and struck from short range for the Tigers' third and final goal.
McMahon's goal came just ahead of Capital's lone tally. A handball in the box gave the Crusaders a penalty shot that slipped past sophomore goalkeeper Cassie Lythjohan (Centerville, Ohio/Centerville) in the 83rd minute. Otherwise, Lythjohan was sturdy in the net, stopping all six shots that came her way during the course of normal gameplay in the second period.
Lythjohan took over from sophomore keeper Melissa Gartner (Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Ursula), who for the second straight game was unchallenged throughout the first period before changing out. Gartner was on the field, if not anywhere near the action, for the first Tiger goal of the game 13 minutes in. Senior defender Erin McLeish (Dublin, Ohio/Scioto) scored on a set piece, taking a direct free kick from 30 yards out and sharpshooting the upper left corner.
Senior forward Cailyn Roeble (Columbus, Ohio/DeSales) notched the eventual game-winning goal in the 66th minute, pushing a cross from sophomore forward/midfielder Kailey Striebel (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) into the net from short range.
Both teams saved their offense for the second period, where 17 of the 24 total shots were levied. The Tigers outshot Capital 16-8, including 10-7 in the closing half, and forced the Crusaders into a total of eight saves.
The Tigers head back to the turf for a home game on Wednesday, Sept. 22, hosting former North Coast Athletic Conference foe Earlham in a 7 p.m. match.
John Strawn '07