PHOTO GALLERY (coming soon)

OBERLIN, Ohio – Despite being forced to hold on down the stretch, Otterbein fought and scraped to do just that Wednesday afternoon to jump to 2-0 on the women's lacrosse field.

The Cardinals, opening a 7-1 halftime lead at Oberlin amid cold and windy conditions, needed to grind until the wire before emerging with a well-deserved 13-11 final decision.

Oterbein snaps a five-game losing skid in the series with the Yeowomen, although the two schools were resuming their non-conference series after last playing back in 2018. Last year's matchup was canceled.

THE SCRIPT:

• It was ALL CARDINALS early, as the visiting squad ripped off a touchdown to begin the day with seven-straight goals. Rising newcomer Alyssa Glenn netted the first before senior Carli Rigel posted three in a row.
   
• Oberlin eventually stopped the bleeding with its only goal of the half late in the second quarter, but Otterbein still carried a solid 7-1 lead into the break.
   
• The Yeowomen certainly grouped during the intermission. After trading goals early in the third, Oberlin embarked on a 5-0 run across a seven-minute span in the third. That sliced the deficit to just three.
   
• Rigel brought momentum back to Otterbein's side but the hosts inched with two (11-9 and 12-10) after man-up goals entering the home stretch.
   
• However, Ava Robey won an important draw control and Riley Smith converted an advantage goal of her own to keep enough separation until the final buzzer.

BOX SCORE NOTABLES:

• Rigel, the reigning Ohio Athletic Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Month for February, finished with new career-highs of six goals and eight points. She impacted multiple parts of the field en route to also notching five ground balls and four draw controls.
   
• Otterbein created a strong difference at in free-position opportunities, converting 7 of 11 while Oberlin missed both of its chances.
   
• Glenn roped in four goals while Ava Robey (2G, 2A) joined the fun with a four-point day as well.
   
• As we have been accustomed to seeing, goalie Maggie Nance reached double-digit saves once again with 10 stops in the cage.
   
• The contest marked the third OAC opponent for Oberlin this season, having recently fallen to Capital (23-17) and defeated John Carroll (16-10).

SPRING TRIP:

Otterbein now heads east for a pair of games in the state of Maryland over spring break, first visiting Stevenson this weekend before a Thursday contest at Trinity Washington later next week.