ST. LOUIS, Mo. — The Wittenberg women's lacrosse team opened the 2010 season, their first under the direction of Head Coach Nichole Johnson, with an exciting 10-9 overtime win over host Fontbonne. The Tigers moved to 1-0 on the new season with the win.
Down 5-0 through the first 18 minutes, the Tigers launched a vigorous comeback bid in the second half, battling to a 9-9 stalemate on a goal by junior Maggie Amorello (Sutton, Mass./Worcester Academy) just before the end of regulation. Two minutes into the overtime period, the Tigers took the lead on a goal by senior Joelle Ghanem (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman) and held on through the remaining five minutes of overtime thanks to some deft goaltending by sophomoreJenny Schaafsma (Grand Rapids, Mich./East Grand Rapids).
Ghanem assisted on Amorello's game-tying goal, before Amorello returned the favor with an assist on Ghanem's game-winning goal.
Sophomore Jenn Close (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) led the Tigers with two goals, while Ghanem finished with a career-best four assists. Sophomore Lindsey Hanners (New Albany, Ohio/Columbus School for Girls) and freshman Erin Guiliano (Loveland, Ohio/Kings) added two tallies apiece, while sophomoresErica Piscitelli (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood) and Krissy Battles (Kingwood, Texas/Kingwood) each scored once.
The Tigers head back to warmer climes for Spring Break in San Antonio, Texas, where they will play Colby-Sawyer, second-ranked Gettysburg and the University of Dallas.