Box Score
Ohio Wesleyan 13, Wooster 9
Senior attacker Colin Short (Jamesville, N.Y./Jamesville-DeWitt) contributed a goal and an assist during a first-half 3-0 run that put Ohio Wesleyan ahead to stay, and junior attacker Casey Helms (Sandwich, Mass./Bridgton Academy) scored goals less than a minute apart during a second-half 3-0 run that helped the Bishops break the game open as Ohio Wesleyan defeated Wooster in a semifinal matchup of the inaugural North Coast Athletic Conference tournament.
Ohio Wesleyan advances to the tournament championship game to face Denison, an 8-2 winner over Kenyon in Tuesday's other semifinal contest. The tournament title tilt is set for 7:30 p.m. on Saturday in Granville. The winner of that game will receive the NCAC's automatic berth to the NCAA Division III tournament.
The Bishops trailed, 3-2, late in the first quarter when senior defenseman K.C. Callahan (University Heights/St. Ignatius) turned the tide by picking up a loose ball in the Bishop end, storming upfield, and dishing off to senior midfielder Pat Bassett (Naperville, Ill./North), who rifled a shot into the back of the Fighting Scot net to even the game at 3-3.
Short followed with a goal less than 2 minutes into the second quarter to put the Bishops ahead to stay, then fed sophomore attacker John Umbach (Montclair, N.J.) for a score to increase the Ohio Wesleyan lead to 5-3.
Wooster closed to within 5-4 on a Tom Herold goal midway through the period, but Short answered for Ohio Wesleyan, tallying an unassisted goal in the last minute of the half to send the Bishops into the locker room with a 6-4 lead.
The Fighting Scots had rallied to within 7-6 on scores by Pat Henderson and Matt Ranck midway through the third quarter, but junior midfielder Spencer Schnell (Dublin/Jerome) and senior midfielder Scotty Rosenthal (Boylston, Mass./Worcester Academy) responded for the Bishops, scoring goals less than a minute apart to make it a 9-6 game.
After Wooster closed to within 9-7 after 3 quarters, the Bishops pulled away.
Schnell ripped a shot into the Wooster net just over a minute into the period, then Helms scored goals just 41 seconds apart, courtesy of helpers from Rosenthal and Short, to give Ohio Wesleyan a 12-7 lead midway through the fourth quarter.
Schnell had 3 goals and an assist for Ohio Wesleyan, while Helms finished with 3 goals and Short compiled 2 goals and 2 assists.
Sophomore goalkeeper Ryan McMahon (Springfield, Va./The Bullis School) went the distance in the Bishop crease, finishing with 8 saves.
Herold and Harry Kemp scored 2 goals apiece for Wooster. Matt Magoon stopped 10 shots in the Wooster crease.
Box Score
