Springfield, OH - The Tigers were able to claim victory over the Capital Comets, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon from Edwards-Maurer Field. Putting together a defensive masterclass performance along with clutch shots from familiar faces, the Tigers' picked up their second win in a row, improving to 2-2-1 through non-conference action. Holding an 20-5 advantage in the series against the Comets, Wittenberg picked up their first win against Capital since 2012, a 1-0 victory on the road at the Capital Invitational. This was Head Coach Dwight Burgess' first win over Capital since taking over the Tiger program.
Coming out of the first- half knotted up at 0-0. With two dangerous offensive possessions by the Comets, forced the Tigers on their heels at the beginning of the second half. However, with continued great play from Sam Nitzberg, the Tigers were able to maintain the clean sheet. While still deadlocked at 0-0, the Wittenberg offense found a spark via a corner kick from Aaron Craddock. Nick Harding gave Wittenberg the lead in the 61st minute action, capitalizing off the Craddock set-piece and putting the home side ahead, 1-0. The Tigers scoring continued, with Craddock finding a spot in the top right of the net, giving the Tigers the 2-0 lead. A breakdown in the Capital defense lead to the second penalty kick opportunity in as many games for the Tiger offense. Converting on the PK opportunity, Kees Ciric put the final Wittenberg goal past the Comets keeper, securing the 3-1 victory.
The two sides came out of the gates, opening with energy and pace, as both sides pushed the limits to get their attempts on goal. Both the Tigers and Comets defenses were able to hold strong, with the Tigers being led by the freshmen Nitzberg, who totaled five saves in total in the first half. Josh Pawlicki and Christopher Meyer had three combined shot attempts for the Tigers, however none of them found the back of the net.
Wittenberg will return to action with a road match-up with Earlham College Tuesday, September 20th.