GROVE CITY, Pa. — Anaiah Lightner (Fr., West Covina, Calif./St. Lucy’s) connected for scores in the first, second, third and fourth quarters to finish with a game-high four markers as the Tigers of Wittenberg University acquired an early lead and staved off 2022 Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III-East Region Champion Washington & Jefferson College, 15-9, in the quarterfinals of the 2022 CWPA Division III Championship.
Facing off at Grove City College’s Longnecker Competition Pool, Wittenberg (9-17, 2-6 CWPA Division III-West) jumped ahead 3-0 by the conclusion of the first quarter, held off the Presidents (9-7, 7-1 CWPA Division III-East) to snag a 6-4 lead at halftime and outscored W&J 4-3 and 5-2 in the third and fourth quarters, respectively, to earn the program’s second consecutive championship semifinal berth.
The runner-up to Austin College (20-6 L) at the COVID-19 impacted/four-team 2021 CWPA Division III Championship hosted by Carthage College, the Tigers will seek to return to the title tilt in 2022. To do so, the team will need to knock-off Division III No. 9-ranked Augustana College at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, April 22.
The Tigers and Vikings met twice this year in CWPA Division III-West Region action with Augustana downing Wittenberg by 15-11 scores on March 27 (at Wittenberg, Springfield, Ohio) and on April 9 (at Carthage College, Kenosha, Wis.).
Facing the Presidents for the second time at Grove City this year after taking a 10-8 win on February 26 in non-conference competition, the Tigers bared their claws early as Kailey Cordova (Jr., Schaumburg, Ill./Schaumburg) buried a penalty shot (5:13), Lightner punched in a natural marker (3:37) and Grace McLaughlin (So., Hatfield, Pa./North Penn) finished a man-up opportunity (1:11) to push Wittenberg out to a 3-0 lead.
Ryley McClellan (Jr., Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) started a comeback bid by W&J in the second quarter as she broke the ice for the Presidents by swishing a six-on-five chance two seconds into the new frame to chop the Presidents’ margin to 3-1.
Lightner responded for W&J at 4:57 to return the lead to three (4-1), but McClellan struck again at 4:29 and Marcella Gallardo-Russell (Fr., Santa Cruz, Calif./Santa Cruz) dented the twine at 3:35 to put the Presidents on the doorstep of tying Wittenberg at 4-3.
Savannah Cross (Jr., Cincinnati, Ohio/Kings) (3:22, man-up) and Sierra Bui (Fr., Portland, Ore./David Douglas) (2:59, even-strength) provided Wittenberg some breathing room by connecting on back-to-back opportunities to expand the margin to 6-3. Megan DePrez (Jr., Claremont, Calif./Claremont) shaved W&J’s deficit back to a pair (6-4) prior to the halftime horn by finding the cage at 2:41 to keep the Presidents within striking distance.
The game turned decisively in Wittenberg’s favor during the opening 90 seconds of the third quarter as Cordova pumped home penalty shot (7:14) and natural (6:27) tallies to double-up Washington & Jefferson at 8-4.
McClellan (3:51) and Kate McKiernan (Jr., Columbus, N.J./Pennington) (3:05) erased Cordova’s work with back-to-back scores to once again move W&J within a pair (8-6).
The back-and-forth scoring continued as Lightner (2:28) and Cross (1:44) delivered their own mini-run to expand the lead back to four (10-6) prior to Kimber Randolph (Sr., Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield) capping off the third quarter with a score at 1:28 to make it 10-7 with eight minutes left in regulation.
Evelyn Heil (Fr., Fort Worth, Texas/Carroll) opened the fourth quarter with a tally at 7:48 to once again provide Wittenberg a four-goal lead (11-7), but W&J refused to waiver as DePrez responded at 7:16 to make it 11-8.
The Tigers gained some distance over the next minute as McLaughlin (6:46, man-up) and Heil (6:22) racked up goals to stake Wittenberg to a 13-8 margin.
Felicia Filippini (Fr., Reading, Pa./Muhlenberg) attempted to rally W&J in the waning minutes by scoring with 4:52 on the clock to move back to within four at 13-9, but Cross (4:36) and Riley Kettelson (So., New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln-Way West) (2:44, man-up) insulated the lead in the closing minutes for the 15-9 final score.
For W&J, McClellan (three) and DePrez (two) both netted multi-goal games with McKiernan, Gallardo-Russell, Randolph and Filippini each chipping in solo markers in support of a seven save effort by Cecelia Weiss (Sr., Mohnton, Pa./Governor Mifflin).
The loss drops Washington & Jefferson into a 3:20 p.m. game on Friday, April 22, against the winner of a second round match-up pitting Penn State Behrend versus Connecticut College. A win against the Lions/Camels’ victor put the Presidents in the Fifth Place game at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 23, while a loss places W&J in the Seventh Place contest at 9:00 a.m.
Historically, Washington & Jefferson has previously finished second (2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017), third (2013), fourth (2010, 2018) and 10th (2019) at the CWPA Division III Championship.
Lightner (four), Cordova (three), Cross (two), Heil (two) and McLaughlin (two) combined to account for 13 of Wittenberg’s goals with Bui and Kettelson adding solo markers.
Goalies Jordan Brough (So., North Palm Beach, Fla./Suncoast) and Olivia Pena (Fr., Ontario, Calif./San Dimas) combined for 10 saves.
| 1st Q | 2nd Q | 3rd Q | 4th Q | – | FINAL | |
| Wittenberg University (9-17, 2-6 CWPA Division III-West) |
3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | – | 15 |
| Washington & Jefferson College (9-7, 7-1 CWPA Division III-East) | 0 | 4 | 3 | 2 | – | 9 |
| W&J Goals: | Ryley McClellan (3); Megan DePrez (2); Kate McKiernan; Marcella Gallardo-Russell; Kimber Randolph; Felicia Filippini | |||||
| Wittenberg Goals: | Anaiah Lightner (4); Kailey Cordova (3); Savannah Cross (2); Evelyn Heil (2); Grace McLaughlin (2); Sierra Bui; Riley Kettelson | |||||
| Saves: | W&J – Cecelia Weiss (7, 30 minutes) ; Wittenberg – Jordan Brough (8, 24 minutes), Olivia Pena (2, 8 minutes) | |||||
| Exclusions: | W&J – 10 ; Wittenberg – 9 | |||||
| Advantage Opportunities: | W&J – 1-for-9 ; Wittenberg – 5-for-10 | |||||
| Cards/Misconducts: | YC – W&J (Head coach Nikola Malezanov, 1:11 left in 1st Q) | |||||
| Officials: | Brandon Nicholson; Martin Murray | |||||
Washington & Jefferson College’s Laura Anthony (#4) tosses a shot over Wittenberg University’s Grace McLaughlin (#6)
Wittenberg University’s Evelyn Heil (#11) attempts to block a shot by Washington & Jefferson College’s Sydney Neumann (#15)
Washington & Jefferson College’s Anastacia Didovich (#10) lines up a shot as Wittenberg University’s Grace McLaughlin (#6) closes
