Wood's Goal-Scoring Ability Still the Best Wooster's Ever Seen

Meg Wood had a nose for the goal like none other in College of Wooster lacrosse history, as 12 years after graduating she still holds the top-three single-season goal totals.

“She was a quality shooter, a quality finisher,” commented her former head coach Brenda Meese recently. “From the time she came in, she was a significant scorer.”

Wood came to the Lady Scots from a hot bed for lacrosse (Alpine, N.J.), according to Meese, and that background helped her flourish right away. As a freshman, she scored a team-high 43 goals en route to first-team all-region and all-conference honors, but she was just scratching the surface of her abilities.

The next season, she averaged four-plus goals a game, finding the back of the net 53 times total while garnering the same postseason accolades. Most impressive, though, was Wood’s personal drive and leadership in bringing Wooster to a six-win improvement from 2-12 to 8-4, which also marked its first winning season in six years.

“She, along with Tamra Barnes, helped move this program into winning territory,” Meese concurred.

Despite the graduation of Barnes and a position change from attack wing to center, Wood continued to pile up the numbers and led the Lady Scots to another winning record (10-8) as a junior. That year, she upped her goal total to 57, all while spending more time on the defensive end, and she began to be recognized nationally for her efforts. In addition to first-team all-region and all-league awards, she was selected an All-American by both the IWLCA (third-team) and the USWLA (honorable mention).

Wood closed her career with her best season yet, scoring a school-record 59 goals and passing out a personal-best 12 assists for 71 points. Wooster posted a 9-6 record and third-straight top-three finish in the league standings. Individually, she was the North Coast Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year and took a spot on the 1995 USWLA All-America Team (third-team).

The two-time All-American and member of the NCAC All-Decade Team  (1993-03) finished as not only Wooster’s, but the conference’s, all-time leading scorer with 241 points. Those records have been since surpassed, however, Wood’s 212 career goals is still a Scot best, and it doesn’t look like that will be broken any time soon as the next closest on that list is 40 goals behind.

While Wood’s most renowned for her exploits on the lacrosse field, it wasn’t her only sport at Wooster. She also played three seasons of field hockey, earning three mentions on the All-NCAC Team, including second-team in 1992 and 1993, as well as a pair of all-region honors. As a forward, she totaled 32 career points (12 goals, 8 assists).

Wood, who earned a bachelor’s degree in history from the College, credits a lot of her lacrosse success to being well rounded.

“I have always loved playing sports and being active,” Wood explained. “Overall, I feel that playing lacrosse and field hockey enhanced my experience at Wooster, and made me a better person.”

Today, Wood, married to Christian Berling, is currently a stay-at-home mom with their infant daughter, Sophia, in Portsmouth, N.H. Prior to giving birth, she was a reading specialist/reading recovery teacher after earning a postgraduate degree from Bank Street College of Education in New York City.