WOOSTER, Ohio – The Otterbein women's lacrosse team couldn't quite keep pace in a non-conference shootout Wednesday night up north, falling to host College of Wooster by a 22-15 final count.

The Cardinals, now 2-2 on the young season, will now gear up for spring break down in the sunshine state… with contests against Westfield State (3/7) and Wentworth Institute (3/10) on deck.

THE SCRIPT:

• A high-scoring first half saw the Cardinals lead 6-5 after one quarter as Emily Willms, Carli Rigel and Macey Buchanan each scored twice in the stretch.
   
• Wooster (now 2-0) settled in and jumped ahead, netting six goals in the frame (the last coming with 1:00 to play) before entering halftime with an 11-9 cushion.
   
• The Fighting Scots took control in the third, opening with another four goals to complete a 7-0 run bridging the break.
   
• Freshman Riley Smith scored to temporarily stop the bleeding for Otterbein, but Wooster countered with another three tallies and coasted down the stretch.

 
NOTABLE STATS:

• Wooster finished with a 47-28 advantage in total shots, with 35 of those coming on frame.
   
• Freshman goalie Maggie Nance made 13 stops for Otterbein, marking double-digit saves in all four outings this season.
   
• Willms scored six times to lead five Cardinals with multi-goal showings. She now has 17 to her credit this year.
   
• Wooster's Britta Treu tied Willms with six goals while a pair of teammates delivered four.
   
• The Cards held a 24-17 edge on the draw (with Willms snagging 10), but unfortunately committed nearly twice as many turnovers as the hosts.

 
LOOKING AHEAD:

The Cardinals will play Westfield at Countryside Sports Complex (Clearwater) in the morning and then turn around 72 hours later for a showdown vs. Wentworth at Northeast Regional Park in Davenport.