Owls to battle Bishops in NCAC semifinal

GAMBIER, Ohio -- The Kenyon College women's lacrosse team will start postseason play Wednesday in the semifinal round of the four-team North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Tournament. The Owls, the tournament's No. 3 seed, will square off against No. 2 seed Ohio Wesleyan University at 7 p.m. in Delaware, Ohio.

Kenyon enters the game with a 7-7 overall record, which includes a 3-3 mark in conference action. The Owls finished in the three-way tie for third place in the NCAC standings, but through a series of tie-breaker rules, the team ended up with the No. 3 seed.

Ohio Wesleyan owns a 13-3 overall record and a 5-1 NCAC record. The Battling Bishops' only conference loss was to Denison University, the tournament's No. 1 seed. Denison will host No. 4-seeded DePauw University in Wednesday's other NCAC semifinal game.

Kenyon and Ohio Wesleyan met earlier this season and the host Battling Bishops rallied from a 14-11 third-quarter deficit to claim a 15-14 win in overtime. Kate Lengel had five goals and two assists in that game for Kenyon, while Ohio Wesleyan was led by Sophia DelGallo, who had four goals and a pair of assists.

The Ohio Wesleyan win was the Battling Bishops' first against Kenyon since April 7, 2009. Prior to the result, Kenyon had won 13 straight games against Ohio Wesleyan. Since the two institutions began NCAC play in the 1984-85 academic year, Kenyon has gone 28-27-1 against Ohio Wesleyan. In conference tournament history, the teams met four times with each winning twice.

Kenyon approaches Wednesday's game with a scoring average of 15.07 goals per game and a goals against average of 9.87. On the other side of the field, Ohio Wesleyan carries an average of 13.81 goals per game and a 9.70 goals against average.

A look at individual statistics shows that Lengel leads the Kenyon attack with 60 points on 50 goals and 10 assists this season. DelGallo heads Ohio Wesleyan's offense with 64 points on 53 goals and 11 assists. At the back end of the defenses, goalkeeper Nola Garand has 136 saves and a 10.71 goals against average for Kenyon, while Abby Markowitz has 104 saves and a 9.65 goals against average.

Kenyon has made the NCAC Tournament for three straight years, following the pandemic-shortened seasons. Last year, the Owls got to the tournament final, but fell to Denison. Ohio Wesleyan also made the tournament last season, falling to Denison in the semifinal. It was the Battling Bishops' first conference tournament appearance since 2010.

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Players Mentioned

#33 Nola Garand: GK; Junior

#8 Kate Lengel: A; Senior

Players Mentioned

#33 Nola Garand
: Junior
: GK

#8 Kate Lengel
: Senior
: A

Players Mentioned

#33 Nola Garand

#8 Kate Lengel

Players Mentioned

#33 Nola Garand

#8 Kate Lengel