Gettysburg, PA - No. 17 Messiah women's lacrosse overcame a 5-1 second-half deficit and took a 6-5 lead into the final minutes, but No. 6 Gettysburg scored two dramatic goals late in a 7-6 overtime win. The decision came in the season-opener for both teams.

The Bullets' game-winner came 1:43 into the overtime session when Maggie Welsh found Katie Landry atop the crease for a clean look on goalie Alexa Dipeso. Landry's shot to the left hit off the post, with the official ruling it over the goal line for the winner. After a routine stick check the Bullets leaped in celebration while Messiah walked slowly off the field.

Furious Rally
Messiah was down 3-1 at the halftime break, and they went down 5-1 at the 25:31 mark of the second-half. As the clocked ticked below 20:00 the Falcons finally began to settle in on the attack and Courtney' Wagner's second goal of the game made it 5-2 with 19:22 left to play.

Wagner's goal was the first of five-straight that Messiah scored over the next 14:30 to take a 6-5 lead. The streak was nothing short of impressive as five different Falcons-- Wagner, Jamie Bishop, Allie Colson, Ida Ehrhardt, and Stephanie Athens-- all tallied. Athens' goal was especially exciting as she took a terrific short pass from Jenna Stover and quickly fired by the goalie's left side.

As thrilling as the comeback was, Messiah's slow-and-steady control of the game was really the story. The Falcons collected three-straight draw controls at one point (after collecting just two in the entire game up to that point), and they beat the Bullets to five of six ground balls while they were on the streak.

Messiah held that 6-5 lead all the way to the 38-second mark of the game whe Gettysburg's Maggie McClain caused a turnover on Kendra Herbenar to give possession back to the hosts. 

So, So Close
After a timeout in their final possession of regulation, Athens collided with Katie Willis and the Bullets' junior was given a free position attempt. She went for the top of the goal, but Dipeso came up with a terrific save. The ball ricocheted all the way to the corner and out of bounds, and Gettysburg was given a restart with just 14 seconds to play. 

Once again, a Messiah foul set up a free position attempt, and this time sophomore Steph Colson-- younger sister of Messiah's Allie Colson-- scored with just two seconds remaining.

Colson's goal tied the game up and soon the teams were headed for the sudden victory overtime.

Missed Opportunity
Gettysburg grabbed the all-important draw control to start the extra session, but Brooke Gamble came up with a huge caused turnover on Emma Christie near the cage, and Messiah had possession. Or, so they thought. Just seconds after Audrey Liberati scooped the groundball, a pass ahead to Allie Colson deflected out of bounds and Gettysburg had another chance.

In their ensuing execution Welsh found Landry on a cut to the top of the crease, and she quickly fired past Dipeso for the game-winner.

In the Boxscore
Despite the twist-and-turn ending, both teams will undoubtedly remember this game as a less-than-sharp start to the season. Messiah (25) and Gettysburg (26) combined for 51 turnovers., and Messiah made good on just 15 of 31 clears. Despite the stretches of sloppy play, both teams showed why they're so highly-regarded in the IWLCA standings as they still managed stay close with each other and play a hard-fought contest.

Wagner led Messiahw ith two goals, and Gamble and Dipeso each caused a game-high three turnovers. Dipeso also collected a game-high five groundballs.

Next Up
The No. 17 Falcons will next play on Saturday when they host Muhlenberg College. The contest will be the season-opener for the Mules. Game time is set for 1:00 p.m.