Tigers Turn Tables On Denison With NCAC Tournament Victory

GRANVILLE, OH – Riding the momentum of two big wins to conclude the regular season that helped the Tigers sneak into the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Tournament, Wittenberg Women's Soccer survived a physical postseason battle with regular season league champion Denison to secure with a 2-1 victory at the Big Red's Kienzle-Hylbert Stadium on Wednesday, Nov. 6.

The Tigers, the No. 4 seed in the tournament, got a goal in the first half and another in the second half to stun Denison, the No. 1 seed. The game was a rematch of last year's semifinal played at Edwards-Maurer Field in Springfield in which Denison, then the No. 4 seed, pulled off a similar one-goal upset over the Tigers, which had secured the No. 1 seed in the tournament by virtue of winning the 2023 NCAC regular season title. It was also the second time Wittenberg and Denison had met in 2024 after the Big Red rallied in Springfield for an unlikely 2-1 win by scoring two goals in the game's final 10 minutes.

Toppling a team that had ended their 2023 season and had handed them such a stinging mid-season defeat in 2024 made this victory for Wittenberg an even sweeter one. The Tigers improved to 6-5-5 overall and advanced to the NCAC Tournament championship game to play the No. 2 seed, DePauw, in Greencastle, Indiana, on Saturday, Nov. 9. DePauw defeated Wooster, 1-0, in the other semifinal match.

"I'm very proud of our team," said Wittenberg Women's Soccer Head Coach Katie Robinson. "We've been talking about embracing the pressure of big games and big moments all season and today was no different. I asked them to focus on the things we do well and to weather the storm when Denison put pressure on us. We knew it would be a physical battle against a team who was good in the air, but we had players throwing their bodies into 50/50 balls and tackles."

The Tigers' first goal came at the five-minute mark of the first half when Chamberlain Browning (Troy, OH / Troy) scored off an assist by Caroline Stupp (Waynesville, OH / Waynesville). Browning scored again at the 46:49 mark of the game to put the Tigers up 2-0, this time unassisted.

Denison's only goal of the night came at the 59:18 mark of the game by Caroline Flynn off an assist from Sophia Connell. The Big Red certainly had their chances with 19 shots total, and 10 on goal. But Lily Winkle (Cynthiana, KY / Harrison County) was a force, as the goalkeeper turned in a phenomenal night, registering nine saves.

"Chamberlain was locked in when she found herself in their box and Lily Winkle came up huge quite a few times, especially late in the second half," Robinson added. "Overall, it was a great team performance. Hats off to Denison, they are a great team and gave us a really hard time tonight."

Team totals for Wittenberg included four shots, including three on goal, two corner kicks, and seven fouls. Denison, which saw its season come to an end with an overall record of 10-5-3, had eight corner kicks and committed 10 fouls. Goalkeeper Molly Noga tallied one save on the night.

At the conclusion of the regular season, the top four teams from the regular season (by points earned in all regular season conference games) participate in a single-elimination tournament to determine the NCAA Automatic Qualifier. Denison had won the tournament title two-straight years and has earned five titles overall. Wittenberg and Ohio Wesleyan lead the NCAC with six tournament titles each. The Tigers won four in a row from 2006 to 2009.