Story Contributions Courtesy of Colin Laszlo '19
Springfield, Ohio – After trailing by as many as 12 points in the fourth quarter, Wittenberg clawed back in the final minutes of the game and had an open look at a game-tying three in the final seconds, but the shot rimmed out to give the Kenyon College Ladies a narrow 70-67 win over the Tigers in North Coast Athletic Conference women's basketball action from Pam Evans Smith Arena. The win pushed Kenyon's record to 6-3 overall and 3-2 in league action, while Wittenberg now sits at 4-5 overall and 1-2 in NCAC play.
How It Happened
The Tigers trailed by 10, 66-56, with 5:05 left in the game, before embarking on a 6-0 run that culminated with a three-ball from freshman guard McKenna Baker at the 2:35 mark to cut the Ladies' lead to 66-62. After a layup from Kenyon's Paige Matijasich made the score 68-62 just 13 seconds later, the two teams went scoreless for nearly two minutes of action, before Wittenberg senior guard Alex Kiess drained a three with 37 seconds left to cut the lead back to three at 68-65. Kiess than followed up with a layup with nine seconds left to make the score 68-67, and after two made free throws from Matijasich, Kiess' game-tying three-point attempt at the buzzer just missed the mark to give Kenyon the three-point win.
Wittenberg jumped out to a 19-11 lead after the first quarter of play, but Kenyon regrouped in the second quarter, outscoring the Tigers, 21-11, in the second stanza to hold a narrow 32-30 edge at halftime. As the second half resumed, the Ladies extended their lead by eight points, leaving the Tigers down by a 55-47 margin as they entered the final quarter of the game.
By The Numbers
Kiess led the Tigers on the day with 18 points in 25 minutes of court action after hitting 7-of-12 attempts from the field and knocking down 3-of-4 attempts from the free throw line. She also added three assists and one steal in the game. Junior center Riley Culver also reached double figures in the game as she just missed out on a double-double with 13 points and seven rebounds. Sophomore guard Delaney Williams also scored nine of her 11 points in the second half to help the Tigers fight back down the stretch. The Ladies had a pair of players hit the double-digit mark, led by Grace Connery hitting five three-pointers off the bench to finish with a team-high 15 points.
Wittenberg and Kenyon both shot 43 percent from the field in the game, while the Ladies held a decided 12-7 edge over the Tigers in made three-point buckets. Kenyon also outrebounded the Tigers by a narrow 32-29 margin, while Wittenberg picked up nine steals compared to only six for Kenyon. Each team also finished the game with 16 total assists.
Up Next
The Tigers will now take next week off to study for finals exams, before beginning preparations for a non-conference contest at Muskingum on Tuesday, December 18th.