NEW CONCORD, Ohio – The Marietta College women's lacrosse team secured its first Ohio Athletic Conference win in program history with a 14-10 win over Muskingum University, Wednesday (April 24).  The Pioneers ended their inaugural season with an overall record of 3-13 and were 1-7 in OAC play, and with the loss the Fighting Muskies fall to 1-14 overall and 0-7 on conference action.  

Head Coach Malory Brunett said, "I'm very proud of the girls for finishing the season on a high note.  Every single player contributed to our first ever conference victory tonight."

Marietta jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the opening six minutes of the game, as Shelby Millheim (Bethlehem, Pa. /Freedom), Carlee Kernodle (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park), and Rachel Sivie (Washington, Pa./Trinity) found the back of the net for the Pioneers.  After six minutes of scoreless play, Marietta stretched its lead to 7-0 with four consecutive goals.  Sivie had two of the four goals, and Millheim and Jamie Denzer (Murrysville, Pa./Plum Senior) scored the other two goals during the run.  

Muskingum responded with four straight goals to cut the Pioneers edge to 7-4, with just over six minutes to play in the half.  Marietta halted to the run when Sivie scored her fourth goal of the half.  The Fighting Muskies scored the final goal of the half, but the Pioneers led 8-5 at the intermission.

Maddie Leers (Crystal Lake, Ill. /Barrington) was in net for Marietta in the first half, she faced 20 shots, 12 of which were on goal, and made seven saves.  

The Pioneers opened the second half strong with three straight goals, to stretch out an 11-5 advantage.  The Marietta goals were scored by Millheim, Sivie, and Sarah Stutler (Park Hills, Ky./Notre Dame Acdemy).  Muskingum responded with two goals of their own, which cut the Pioneers lead to 11-7 six minutes into the final half.  

After five minutes of scoreless action, the combination of Sivie and Millheim put Marietta on top 13-7 with 13 minutes to play, as each scored a goal.  Three minutes later, the Fighting Muskies notched a goal, but Abbie Puchta (Blue Ash, Ohio/Loveland) answered for the Pioneers when she scored off a feed from Millheim, to give Marietta a 14-8 lead with 8:24 minutes remaining in the game.  Muskingum scored the final two goals of the game, but Marietta won, 14-10.  

Sam Mooney (New Cumberland, Pa. /Red Land) was in goal for the Pioneers in the second half, she faced 20 shots, 15 of which were on goal, and made 10 saves.  

Marietta was led by Sivie as she scored a game high six goals, and picked up a ground ball.  Millheim tacked on four goals, and won a team leading five draw controls.  Lindsay Horton (Birmingham, Ala. /John Carroll Catholic) and Faith Campbell (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills Senior ) pitched in on defense, as each caused a turnover.  "Rachel had a great game on the 8-meter tonight, her free positions were huge momentum shifters.  Shelby contributed all over the field, she was able to finish on offense and came up with some big draw controls," added Coach Brunett.  

Coach Brunett concluded, "We still have a lot to work on as a team, but I am very proud of these women.  Tonight they completed what they started this year, building a women's lacrosse program.  Our future is very bright, and we look forward to the second year of our program."

Fans can follow all the Pioneer teams all year long at pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter and Instagram.