The Basics
Final Score: Detroit Mercy 11, Winthrop 8
Records: Detroit Mercy 1-5, Winthrop 0-6
Location: Charlotte, N.C.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (3/5/2020) -- One goal went. Then another. And another. Then a sixth-straight to take the lead.
The University of Detroit Mercy women's lacrosse team scored six-straight goals to open the second half and out-scored host Winthrop 9-1 in the second half overall as the Titans used a furious rally to top the Eagles in an 11-8 road victory Thursday evening. It was the first victory of the 2020 season for the Titans. The game was moved to Charlotte, North Carolina and the campus of Queens University due to inclement weather.
Senior midfielder
Kaitlyn Wandelt totaled six goals for the Titans -- five of them after halftime and the game-winner with 10:54 left. She scored the final four Titan goals of the game. Detroit Mercy out-shot Winthrop, 20-11, in the second half of the victory, scoring on nine of its 18 shots on goal in the final 30 minutes. Junior goalkeeper
Maddie Johnson was also big in net and was credited with 13 saves in the contest.
The Titans were unable to get their offense going in the opening half as Winthrop led 7-2 at the halftime break. Johnson had six saves in the first half.
But the second half was all Titans as Detroit Mercy scored four goals in the opening 10:17 of the second half. Four different Titans scored during that stretch with Wandelt opening the half with her second goal of the game. Sophomore
Elise Harder then scored with 23 minutes left to cut the deficit to three, 7-4. Junior
Kristina Ellis and sophomore
Taryn McManus scored with 45 seconds of each other as Detroit Mercy was within one goal, 7-6, with 19:43 remaining on the clock.
Wandelt tied the game just minutes later and then scored another goal with 13:49 left to cap a 6-0 run that saw Detroit Mercy take the lead, 8-7. After Winthrop's lone goal of the second half to again tie the game, 8-8, Wandelt responded 90 seconds later at the 10:54 mark with her fifth goal of the game, which also proved to be the game-winning goal.
Junior
Taylor Cantelon scored her first goal of the season to give the Titans a two-goal cushion with 6:01 left and Wandelt capped off the comeback, putting the game away on her sixth goal of the contest with just 40 seconds left on the clock as Detroit Mercy led 11-8. Detroit Mercy went 8-of-9 on clears in the second half and smothered the Winthrop attack as the Eagles had just eight shots on goal in the second half, with Johnson turning aside seven of those shots on net.
Harder led the way in the draw circle, corralling five draw controls on the evening. Cantelon added two draw controls. Sophomore defender
Claire Conway had a team-high three ground balls, while Wandelt and Cantelon each added two ground balls for the red, white and blue. Wandelt had six points on her six goals and Ellis had two points on one goal and one assist.
Detroit Mercy had the edge in shots overall, 30-29, and shots on goal (24-21). Detroit Mercy forced Winthrop into 15 turnovers and was credited with four caused turnovers. Both teams were 3-of-11 on free-position shots and both teams finished with 13 saves. Winthrop had a slight edge in draw controls, 12-9.
Titan News & Notes
• Wandelt tallied her second-straight hat trick of the 2020 season for the Titans.
• Johnson had a career-best 13 saves and her first career 10-plus save effort.
• Wandelt has 10 points and nine goals through her first three games of 2020.
• The last Titan to score six or more goals in a game was
Lexie Kinmond, who scored six goals at Howard last season (April 5, 2019).
• The 24 shots on goal for the Titans were a season-high.
• It was the second meeting in women's lacrosse between the two programs and first since 2013.
Up Next
Detroit Mercy returns to the field Sunday, closing out its three-game road trip at Gardner-Webb in Boiling Springs, North Carolina. The opening draw of the contest is set for 1 p.m. ET.
