Tigers Rally Past Wooster For 2-1 Win In NCAC Opener

WOOSTER, Ohio - A young Wittenberg Tiger team picked up some much-needed momentum at a most opportune time. Playing on the road against one of their traditional rivals in the opener of the 2014 North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) season, the Tigers banged home a pair of second-half goals to capture a clutch 2-1 victory over the Wooster Fighting Scots.

The win moved the Tigers to 2-3 on the season and 1-0 in the league. Wooster is now 1-3 overall and 1-1 in the NCAC.

Wittenberg fell behind in the ninth minute as Wooster's Taylor Thorp scored an unassisted goal. The 1-0 advantage held up through halftime as the Scots held a 7-4 edge in shots.

Over the final 35 minutes, however, the Tigers turned the tables, starting just 2:51 into the second half as freshman Carlijn Van Den Berg (Zwolle, The Netherlands/Thorbecke) found the back of the cage off a rebound after a shot by freshman Audrey Coler (Cincinnati, Ohio/Ursuline Academy). A little less than 11 minutes later, Wittenberg took the lead on a goal by senior Beth Warning (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) off a feed from senior Kim Loofbourrow (Prospect, Ky./Ballard).

The Tiger defense made that lead stand up, weathering 12 Wooster shots and eight penalty corner opportunities by the Scots. Sophomore goalkeeper Laura Jansing (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) made her first start of the season a winning one, coming up with four saves.

The Tigers will continue their weekend road trip with a game at Oberlin on Sunday at 1 p.m.