Trailing 12-5 midway through the third quarter in a steady rain on Phelps Stadium, Exeter girls lacrosse delivered one of its most dramatic comebacks of the season, storming back for a thrilling 13-12 overtime victory over New Hampton on Wednesday afternoon. Big Red closed the game on an 8-0 run, capped by Abby Licht's overtime game-winner.

Lilly Lombardi ignited the rally with an 8-meter goal before Big Red struck again just two minutes later on a crisp transition sequence, as Quinn Dabney set up Emma Van Oss with a tic-tac-toe passing play to cut into the deficit. Lombardi added another 8-meter finish with 43 seconds left in the third quarter to make it 12-8 heading into the final frame.

The deficit remained four goals deep into the fourth quarter before Lombardi took over once again, beating her defender and driving a shot into the lower corner to pull Exeter within 12-9. With under four minutes remaining, Big Red intensified the pressure. Riley Chiang charged through the middle and buried a shot into the top corner with 3:25 to play, trimming the margin to two.

Moments later, a relentless defensive effort off the draw helped Exeter regain possession, and Devon Wilson capitalized, wrapping around the cage and powering home a goal to bring Big Red within one at 12-11 with 2:35 left.

In the closing minute, Lombardi came up with another enormous play, battling for a loose ball in the defensive zone to give Exeter one more possession. Following a timeout, she sprinted through multiple defenders straight down the middle and fired a shot through traffic into the right side of the net with 34 seconds remaining, evening the score at 12-12 and forcing overtime.

Big Red wasted little time completing the comeback in the extra session. Drawing three defenders at the 8-meter mark, Lombardi slipped a feed to Abby Licht in front of the cage. Licht spun and tucked a low shot into the corner for the game-winning goal and a remarkable Exeter victory.

Hazel Jacobs was strong in between the pipes, making a pair of key stops late, while Big Red displayed incredible team defense down the stretch.

Big Red returns to Phelps Stadium on Saturday when it hosts Thayer Academy at 2:00 p.m.