There was no shortage of drama as the NCAA Division III Women’s Lacrosse Championship moved to its second round. Defending national champion Middlebury, Ithaca, York and Messiah all scored game-winning goals in the final minute of regulation or overtime to move onto next weekend’s regionals.

Jenna McNicholas scored the game-winning goal with 22 seconds remaining as Middlebury edged NESCAC rival Colby 10-9 to keep its hopes of defending its national title alive. Colby had an 8-5 lead with under 20 minutes to play, but the Panthers closed the game on a 5-1 run to pick up the victory. Emma McDonagh led Middlebury with four goals, including back-to-back goals to kick off Middlebury’s game-closing flurry.

Watch: Jenna McNicholas completes the @MiddAthletics comeback, breaking a 9-9 tie with 21.7 secs left to vault Midd into @NCAADIII Sweet 16. pic.twitter.com/oGMKeyKEq6

— Jack Korte (@JackMyNBC5) May 14, 2017

The Panthers move on to meet Brockport State, which beat Denison 17-7 as Kelly Wall (6g) and Heather Conklin (5g) did the damage.

Ally Runyon’s fifth goal of the game was the game-winner as Ithaca edged Wesleyan 11-10. Ithaca fell behind 5-1 early in the contest, but closed the lead to 7-5 by the half and then took its first lead at 9-8 with with 8:28 to play as Morgan Racicot wrapped up a three-goal Bomber run. Wesleyan’s Liana Mathias forced the overtime on a game-tying goal with 1:26 remaining in regulation.

What an ending!!! @ithacawlax defeats Wesleyan, 11-10, in overtime in the first round of the NCAA Tournament!! pic.twitter.com/vithp0addp

— Ithaca Bombers (@BomberSports) May 14, 2017

Ithaca will take on Salisbury in the regionals after the Sea Gulls scored the final six goals of the game to defeat Hamilton 7-5. Salisbury managed just one goal in the first 39 minutes of the game, but then held Hamilton scoreless for the final 20 minutes to rally for the win. Gabby Nieves and Lindsey Wagner each had two goals for Salisbury and Kristen Murphy’s goal with 8:53 remaining was the winning goal.

Meghan Fox scored the game-winning goal with just 20 seconds remaining, ending a 26-minute scoring drought, as York edged St. John Fisher 5-4 in a defensive battle. Fox and Melissa Meehling scored goals in the opening three minutes of the game, but York scored just once more in the first half. Caitlin Rankin opened the scoring early in the second half to give York a 4-2 lead, but the Spartans were held off the board unti Fox scored the winner to break a 4-4 tie. York’s Charlotte Wright came up big with 14 saves to earn the win.

York will meet another last-second victor in the regionals as Messiah edged Cortland 14-13 on Annika Johnsen’s free position goal with 16 seconds left in the game. Messiah had a three-goal lead with 20 minutes left in the game, but Cortland ripped off four straight goals, taking a 13-12 lead on Hannah Elmer’s goal with 3:52 remaining. Ida Ehrhardt tied the game with 2:38 to play and then Johnsen’s third goal of the game was the winner. Stephanie Athens led Messiah with five goals.
 

PHOTO BY PATRICK HINELY/W&L

Washington and Lee’s defense, ranked No. 2 in NCAA Division III, was as good as advertised in an 8-2 victory over Mary Washington in the second round of the NCAA Division III Women’s Lacrosse Championship. The Generals have now won 13 consecutive games and at 17-1 have tied the school record for wins in a season set by the 2008 team and matched in 2014.

Back-to-back goals by Paige Haskins and Holly Hudson gave Mary Washington a 2-1 lead a little over six minutes into the game, but the Generals held the Eagles off the scoreboard for the final 53:27 of the game. Jess Castelo, Hayley Soutter and Haley Tucker each had two goals for the second-ranked Generals, who advance to play Catholic, which routed Washington and Jefferson 20-1. Nicollete Crisalli had five goals for Catholic and Laura Dunn had two goals and five assists.

Gettysburg used an eight-goal run in the second half to pull away from a one-goal lead and defeat FDU-Florham 13-5. Katie Willis led the Bullets with three goals. Gettysburg’s opponent in the regionals will be Rhodes. The Lynx, who feature the nation’s top-scoring offense, downed Illinois Wesleyan 16-10 behind eight goals from Kendall Cunningham. Rhodes goalie Katherine Tooley also made 13 saves.

Ashley Bernardi scored a season-high six goals and added two assists as Mount Union pulled away in the final minutes to beat Calvin. Mount Union moves on to play The College of New Jersey, which defeated Farmingdale behind five goals from Kathleen Jaeger and four goals and two assists from Olivia Cleale.

Trinity routed Babson 16-5, jumping out to an 11-1 halftime lead, and were led by Abby McInerney with four goals. The Bantams will face a tough Franklin & Marshall team in the regionals. F&M pulled away late in the first half and then dominated the second half to post a 17-7 win over Cabrini. Four different Diplomats registered hat tricks with Siobhan Burke posting a team-high four points (3g, 1a).

Colorado College avenged an earlier loss to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, topping the Athensa 15-12. Trailing 6-5 late in the first half, CC scored two goals in the final 1:23 of the half and then scored the first three goals of the second half to take command. Mary Taussig and Annie DeFrino each scored four goals for the Tigers. Colorado College will play No. 1 ranked William Smith which overcame three lightning delays and beat Westfield State 15-1. Alexandra Bird and Melissa Moore each had four goals for the Herons, who stretched their winning streak to 16 games.

NCAA Division III Second Round Scores

TCNJ 19, Farmingdale 6
Mount Union 14, Calvin 11
Middlebury 10, Colby 9
Brockport State 17, Denison 7
William Smith 15, Westfield State 1
Colorado College 15, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 12
Washington and Lee 8, Mary Washington 2
Catholic 20, Washington & Jefferson 1
Gettysburg 13, FDU-Florham 5
Rhodes 16, Illinois Wesleyan 10
Salisbury 7, Hamilton 5
Ithaca 11, Wesleyan 10
Trinity 16, Babson 5
Franklin & Marshall 17, Cabrini 7
York 5, St. John Fisher 4
Messiah 14, Cortland 13