OBERLIN, Ohio – The Cardinal men's lacrosse team faced a late deficit at Oberlin College Wednesday night after going cold in the second half, only to stay the course and escape with a 9-8 victory behind two monumental goals from junior attackman Logan Fenech.

The triumph was also a notable one for many involved, as it marked the 100th-career win for head coach Colin Hartnett and the program as a whole. Hartnett launched the program back in 2010 and has been at the reins ever since.

Otterbein, improving to 4-2 on the season, opened the game strong with a trio of unassisted goals during the initial part of the first quarter. The Cards later stood on top, 5-1, early in the second after Fenech buried a man-up score off an assist from Xander Seal.

The Cardinals would carry a 6-3 lead into halftime, but go silent offensively throughout a 25-minute stretch in the second half as Oberlin fought its way back. The Yeomen embarked on a 6-0 scoring run, taking the lead with 11:56 remaining in the game and then adding an insurance goal, for an 8-6 margin, with 8:50 on the clock.

Otterbein eventually regrouped, slicing the deficit in half at the 5:10 mark when Seal found Nick Clay for a critical momentum shifter. Them following a defensive stop with under 3:00 left, the Cardinals flew up the field and saw Fenech finish a shot high at 1:50 for an equalizer.

The Cards won the ensuing faceoff and called timeout to resituate its offense. Fenech ultimately beat his man again, this time working to his right and roping in the game-winner with just 33 seconds left. His hat trick led all goal scorers, while Seal paced the club once again with a game-high four points.

Justin McKee tied for a game-best five ground balls and also caused a pair of turnovers, while Jason McDonald and Jordan Tobler combined to go 12 of 19 at the X.

Oberlin finished with a sizeable 45-29 shot advantage, but went just 1 of 5 on extra-man opportunities and saw 12 shots saved by Cardinal goalie Zach Groene. He went the full 60 minutes in the cage to help Otterbein beat Oberlin for a third-straight time, including two of those matchups by just one goal.

Otterbein will now be off a full 10 days before getting back into action, as next week's contest at Kenyon College has been canceled. The Cards are now scheduled to return to the field on Saturday, March 21 by hosting Mount Union to begin Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play.