SPRINGFIELD — Juniors Nathan Brown (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman) and Zach Busby (Cedarburg, Wis./Cedarburg) and sophomore Dillon McKeigue (Olmsted Township, Ohio/St. Edwards) all recorded hat tricks to lead the Wittenberg men's lacrosse team to a 19-4 win over Wabash on Tuesday night to close out its 2024 North Coast Athletic Conference schedule.

The Basics

• Records: Wittenberg (7-5 overall, 3-5 NCAC), Wabash (8-7 overall, 1-6 NCAC)
• Venue: Edwards-Maurer Field - Springfield, Ohio

Stat Leaders

• McKeigue led the Wittenberg offense with five goals, recording his fifth hat trick of the season.
• Brown recorded five points on four goals and one assist, posting his fourth hat trick of the season.
• Busby tallied three goals for his first career hat trick.
• Junior Connor Matthews (Columbus, Ohio/Dublin Coffman) and sophomore Kyle Gould (Fairport, N.Y./Fairport) each recorded three points on two goals and one assist.
• Senior Kody Gould (Fairport, N.Y./Fairport) scored two goals.
• Senior Holton Boehmer (Brighton, Mich./Brighton) scored one goal.
• Junior Max Benincasa (Shaker Heights, Ohio/Shaker Heights) led the Tigers in caused turnovers with three.
• Sophomore Chase Singleton (Springboro, Ohio/Springboro) tallied two saves and earned the win in goal. Freshman Griffin Howell (Whitestown, Ind./Zionsville Community) played 22 minutes in relief and tallied six saves.

The Game

• Wittenberg scored the first three goals of the game and outscored Wabash 4-1 in the period overall. Brown, McKeigue and Busby scored the first three goals, and Busby found the back of the net again with 2:03 left in the period for the 4-1 lead.
• The Tigers extended their lead to 10-2 going into halftime after outscoring the Little Giants by a 6-1 margin in the second quarter. Kyle Gould opened the scoring in the period, and McKeigue followed with back-to-back goals to complete his hat trick and put Wittenberg up 7-1 with 4:11 remaining before halftime. After a Wabash score, the Tigers closed the quarter with a 3-0 run, getting goals from Kyle Gould, Matthews and McKeigue.
• The Tigers continued adding to their lead in the third quarter, outscoring the Little Giants 7-2 to take a 17-4 edge into the fourth. Brown scored three times in the period to go with one goal each from Boehmer, McKeigue, Matthews and Kody Gould.
• Wittenberg capped the scoring with a pair of fourth-quarter goals for the 19-4 victory. Busby found the back of the net to complete his hat trick with 3:22 left, and Kody Gould added his second goal of the game with 52 seconds remaining.
• Wittenberg out-shot Wabash by a 39-20 margin and finished with a 29-22 edge in grounds balls. The Tigers forced 21 Wabash turnovers.

Quote - Head coach Jay Owen

• "I'm proud of how these young men competed tonight. Our defense played well and cleared the ball well. It was not a picture-perfect weather night for our seniors, but I'm glad they got a win in their last home game."

Records & Milestones

• Wittenberg is now 10-0 all-time against Wabash.
• Eleventh-year head coach Jay Owen is now 72-77 all-time at Wittenberg.
• Brown has 45 points on 23 goals and 22 assists this season. He has 94 career points on 50 goals and 44 assists.
• Kyle Gould has 37 points on 32 goals and five assists this season. He has 70 career points on 62 goals and eight assists.
• Kody Gould has 91 career points on 74 goals and 17 assists.
• McKeigue has 36 points on 28 goals and eight assists this season. He has 81 career points on 55 goals and 26 assists.
• Singleton has 182 career saves.

Up Next

• The Tigers return to action on Saturday to close out their 2024 season with a non-conference game at Westminster at 12 p.m. Wittenberg will not qualify for the upcoming four-team NCAC Tournament.