The Harford Community College women’s lacrosse waited more than 1,000 days for the chance to defend its 2019 NJCAA championship. A 90-minute lightning delay was not about to spook the Fighting Owls.

Harford built a 10-5 lead before the break and maintained that advantage the rest of the way in a 19-14 win over Onondaga Community College in the NJCAA final in Syracuse, New York.

Claire Ashburn had four goals and four assists, Madison Dawson scored five goals and Samantha Devorak made 18 saves for the Fighting Owls. Casey DiVenti did it all with four goals, two assists, eight draw controls, six ground balls and five caused turnovers.

The NJCAA did not conduct a women’s lacrosse championship and most teams did not play at all in 2021 due to the pandemic, which also erased nearly the entirety of the 2020 season.

Harford was the top seed in the tournament despite a pair of regular season losses to Anne Arundel Community College — which the Fighting Owls avenged with a convincing 18-6 win in the regional championship May 7.

The NJCAA’s top-scoring offense met its season average of 19 goals per game in wins over Genesee and Onondaga in the national semifinals and championship game, respectively.

Julianna Barton and Trysten Burns each scored six goals and corralled six draw controls apiece in the loss for Onondaga, which knocked off second-seeded Anne Arundel in the semifinals.