The Basics
Final Score: Ohio State 19, Detroit Mercy 5
Records: Detroit Mercy 0-1, Ohio State 2-0
Location: Columbus, Ohio (Woody Hayes Athletic Center)

COLUMBUS, Ohio (2/10/2019) -- The University of Detroit Mercy women's lacrosse team dropped its season opener at Big Ten foe Ohio State on Sunday, falling 19-5 from Woody Hayes Athletic Center in Columbus, Ohio. It was Megan Callahan's head coaching debut with the Titans.

Senior attacker Lexie Kinmond led the way offensively with two goals and one assist, while senior midfielder Morgan Girardi added two goals for the Titans. Freshman midfielder Elise Harder scored on her first collegiate shot in her first game and added two points for the red, white and blue.

Senior goalkeeper Allison McDonough made 10 saves in net for Detroit Mercy, while junior midfielder Kaitlyn Wandelt led the Titans with six draw controls, including the first two of the game. Junior defender Tegan McManus and McDonough each had team-highs with five ground balls, while Girardi and McManus each had three caused turnovers. As a team, Detroit Mercy caused 17 Ohio State turnovers in the contest.

Wandelt broke the career draw controls record in the contest, securing six draw controls in the game to surpass former standout Anna Eidem (159 career DC) in Titan history in draw controls. With her six draw controls, Wandelt now has 163 in just 45 career games. Wandelt had six DC, four ground balls and two caused turnovers against the Buckeyes.

Ohio State scored the first two goals of the game before Harder answered with a free-position shot to trim the deficit to 2-1 early in the game. Harder's first career goal came on her first career shot. Kinmond added a goal in the first half, but the Buckeyes would go on to lead at the halftime break, 14-2.

Detroit Mercy scored three goals in the second half -- two of them by Girardi. Kinmond had two points in the second half, assisting on Girardi's first goal before scoring herself on a side-armed shot with just minutes left in the contest. Girardi scored on both of her shots in the game.

The Buckeyes led in the shot count, 38-17, and had the edge in draw controls (16-8). Detroit Mercy had a 5-4 edge in draws in the second half. The Titans had 33 ground balls and 17 caused turnovers. Nine Titans recorded at least one CT in the game and six tallying two or more.

Sophomore defender Sarah Lucas added four ground balls and two caused turnovers on defense, while McDonough added five ground balls to her 10 saves. Girardi also had three GB and seniors Emma Leszczak and Alex McCafferty and Harder each added two ground balls. Kinmond had a team-high eight shots in the game, seven of them on frame.

Ohio State had 22 turnovers overall, while Detroit Mercy had 26. Detroit Mercy was 14-of-24 on clears, while OSU went 15-of-18 in the contest.

Titan News & Notes
• Elise Harder was making her first career start and scored on her first collegiate shot for the Titans.
• Taryn McManus also made her collegiate debut for the Titans in the second half.
• Wandelt set a school-record last season with 77 draw controls and began the season with 157, just two shy of the career mark.
• It was McDonough's 26th career game of 10 or more saves in a game.
• The Titans open the 2019 season with four of five away from Detroit.
• Megan Callahan '13 played for the Titans from 2010-13 and is in her third season on the Detroit Mercy staff overall.
• Detroit Mercy and Ohio State were meeting for the eighth time in women's lacrosse.

Up Next
Detroit Mercy returns to the road next weekend on Sunday, visiting Marquette in another non-conference match-up in Milwaukee.