Senior Sophia Mellis buried a walk-off free-position goal just before the buzzer sounded to cap The College of Wooster women's lacrosse team's incredible 18-17 comeback against Kenyon College in the semifinals of the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament.

With its Wednesday evening win, Wooster advances to face top-seeded Denison University in Saturday's tournament championship. Denison will host the 1 p.m. contest.

Wooster (16-1) found itself down 17-14 with 6:37 to play. Senior Lizzie Hardy started Wooster's comeback with one of her team-leading eight draw controls. Mellis' sixth goal of the night made it 17-15 at 5:52. Senior Sidney O'Rourke kept possession with Wooster on the draw control, leading to a Hardy goal that made it a one-score game with 5:16 remaining.

Next, junior Audrey Richardson's biggest career save kept it a one-goal game. Wooster's defense regrouped following the good Ashley Auerbach look to force a Kenyon possession clock violation 60 seconds beyond Richardson's save. In transition, first-year Nicole McCalla cleared the ball into the offensive end and found a cutting Kylie MacMillan for the game-tying score in the final minute.

The ball went all the way to Wooster's defensive end on the ensuing draw control, where it was scooped by MacMillan. The Scots' first-year midfielder was fouled by Auerbach, resulting in a yellow card. Upon quickly getting the ball to Mellis, the Scots' quickest player, Wooster wound up with a free-position shot with three seconds remaining. Mellis darted in and fired in the winning score to set off the celebration.

Offense was the name of the game early, as the teams combined for 12 first-period goals. Wooster emerged with a 7-5 lead behind its 4-0 swing. Mellis scored twice, while Hardy and MacMillan found the back of the net to stake Wooster to a 7-4 lead, and the Scots led until Kenyon's Spencer Kirsch tied the game at 10 with 2:13 to go before halftime.

Kenyon's four-goal run that started on an Ashley Quinn-to-Auerbach goal put the Owls up 14-11, and Wooster trailed until MacMillan's tying goal with 42 seconds on the clock.

Mellis' seven goals marked a career-high and moved the senior past 50 for the season. Sophomore Mizan Jacobs and Snaguski scored three goals each, with Snaguski moving into the top-10 all-time in program history in the process.

Hardy's eight draw controls bumped the senior's career haul to 400 and she is now seven shy of Hannah Shaw's single-season program record 128. The groundball leaders were sophomore Cassidy Driscoll, Hardy, MacMillan, and Jacobs at three each, while Driscoll caused a team-high three turnovers. Richardson made seven saves.

Auerbach scored six times for Kenyon. Ella Baxter and Quinn dished out five assists each. Lily Mason handed the duties in the midfield to the tune of nine draw controls and two groundballs. Emma Sage anchored the back end with three caused turnovers, the same total Meagan Lacombe tallied on overpasses from Wooster players. Lacombe was less effective in stopping shots, evidenced by 18 goals allowed to just five saves.

Wooster led 32-28 in shots, 23-20 in groundballs, and went 4-of-5 on free-position shots, while Kenyon missed both of its. The Owls had 20 drawl controls to the Scots' 18, and both teams were unsuccessful on at least five clears.

Denison, ranked sixth in this week's Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association Div. III national poll, had no problem with fourth-seeded John Carroll University in Wednesday's other semifinal. The Big Red bounced the Blue Streaks 19-7.