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Ohio Wesleyan 73, Oberlin 66 (2/19/2002)

Senior post Katy Sturtz (Worthington/Columbus Watterson) kicked off a 6-0 burst in the final 62 seconds of regulation time as Ohio Wesleyan defeated Oberlin in North Coast Athletic Conference tournament quarterfinal action on Tuesday at Branch Rickey Arena.

Ohio Wesleyan advances to the tournament semifinals against sixth-seeded Earlham, an overtime upset winner over third-seeded Denison on Tuesday. The Ohio Wesleyan-Earlham game will tip off at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday at the HPER Center on the Wittenberg campus in Springfield. NCAC Tournament Bracket

The first half was an evenly-played, back-and-forth event that featured 14 lead changes and 3 ties. Oberlin had the biggest lead of the half, a 4-point edge that the Yeomen enjoyed 4 different times in the final 6 minutes, but Ohio Wesleyan bounced back with 3 free throws from sophomore post Tiffany Barbee (Detroit, Mich./Cass Technical) and 2 more by Sturtz to re-take the lead at 31-30 with :54.9 left.

Oberlin responded with a Malisha Richardson lay-in, but the Bishops struck back once more as freshman wing Kelly Heil (Sylvania/Southview) scored on a fast break lay-in with :07 left in the half to give Ohio Wesleyan a 33-32 lead at the intermission.

The second half was more of the same, with 5 more lead changes and 6 ties in the early going before Heil sank a lay-in to put the Bishops ahead to stay at 51-49 with 9:17 remaining. Barbee followed with a free throw for a 52-49 Ohio Wesleyan lead.

Heil and Barbee helped the Bishops push the lead in the closing moments, with Barbee scoring on a putback and Heil draining a 3-poitner with 6:04 left to pad a 54-53 Ohio Wesleyan lead to 59-53.

From that point on, Oberlin did not score twice in a row. The Yeowomen did get a pair of 3-pointers by Sonja Spencer to close to within 63-61 with 4:29 to play and were still within reach at 67-64 on Nzinga Broussard's steal and lay-in with 2:00 remaining.

Sturtz then hit a lay-in with 1:02 left, and after a Yeowomen miss, senior guard Michelle Wolfe (Gahanna/Lincoln) was fouled and hit both free throws with :41.7 to play. Oberlin missed a shot on its next possession, and Heil finished off a fast break with a lay-in to give Ohio Wesleyan a 73-64 lead with :18 remaining.

Heil led the Bishops with 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Barbee finished with 22 points and went 9-for-9 from the field. Sturtz scored 21 points and added 8 rebounds. Junior post Mindy Hammond (Columbus/DeSales) led the Bishops with 8 assists.

Broussard and Richardson led Oberlin with 19 points apiece, while Spencer finished with 12 points. Tranice Harrell had a team-high 9 rebounds.