Kenyon 73, Ohio Wesleyan 72

Jan. 31, 2009

Senior post Katie Hamilton (Hilliard/Darby) scored to bring Ohio Wesleyan within a single point with :22 to play, but Kenyon survived a frantic final few seconds to escape Branch Rickey Arena with a North Coast Athletic Conference win on Saturday.

Hamilton scored on a putback to bring the Bishops within 73-72 with :22 remaining. The Bishops fouled Kenyon's Morgan Korinek with :16 to play and Korinek missed the front end of the one-and-one, with Hamilton clearing the defensive rebound.

Sophomore post Kayla Gordon (St. Louis, Mo./Mehlville) got a look from 3-point range with :09 left, but her shot was off the mark, and Hamilton tied up Korinek on that rebound, with the ball awarded to Ohio Wesleyan on the alternating possession with :04 left.

Hamilton's lay-in off the ensuing inbounds pass rolled off the back of the rim, and neither team was able to gain possession of the rebound before time expired.

The Bishops opened an early lead, with Gordon burying a 3-pointer on the first possession of the game and Hamilton adding a lay-in for a 5-0 Ohio Wesleyan advantage.

Ohio Wesleyan still led, 25-19, on a pair of free throws by sophomore guard Pam Quigney (Mentor) with 7:31 to play when the Ladies assembled a 17-2 run. Korinek's 3-point play brought Kenyon within 25-24, and a 3-pointer by Suzanne Kahle gave the Ladies their first lead of the game. After the Bishops tied the game at 27-27, Kenyon scored the next 9 points, getting baskets from Kahle, Laurel Stokes, and Korinek and finishing off the run with a 3-pointer by Elana Carlson for a 36-27 lead with 3:13 left in the half.

Quigney hit a jumper just before the buzzer to bring the Bishops within 38-33 at halftime, and Ohio Wesleyan continued that momentum by scoring the first 6 points of the second period to take the lead on Gordon's jumper with 17:40 to go.

Kenyon broke a 47-47 tie with 7 straight points, getting a Kahle 3-pointer and baskets by Kathleen Williams and Stokes, only to see the Bishops reel off the next 8 points as freshman wing Lea Mackenbach (St. Marys/Memorial) hit a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws and Hamilton went 3-for-4 from the line for a 55-54 Bishop lead with 8:19 to go.

Carlson and Kahle followed with 3-pointers to cap an 8-0 Kenyon run, putting the Ladies ahead by a 62-55 count with 6:08 to play, but once again the Bishops responded with a run of their own, with Hamilton scoring from inside and Gordon knocking down a 3-pointer to make it a 62-60 game.

Stokes gave the Ladies a 71-65 lead with a 3-pointer with 2:57 to play, and Ohio Wesleyan chipped away with a Hamilton free throw, a jumper from the lane by sophomore wing Tyler Cordell (Columbus/St. Francis DeSales) and a pair of Quigney free throws to close to within 71-70 with 1:07 left.

Korinek's lay-in with :42 to play provided the Ladies with a 73-70 lead, allowing them to withstand the closing seconds of action.

Gordon scored a team-high 21 points, while Hamilton finished with 17 points and a game-high 15 rebounds. Cordell scored 11 points and led the Bishops with 7 assists, and Quigney finished with 10 points.

Williams led Kenyon with 18 points. Kahle added 13 points and 6 rebounds, Carlson scored 12 points and Korinek kicked in 11 points.

Box Score