Greencastle, IN – The Oberlin College women's basketball team had its 2021-22 season come to an end on Friday night in the North Coast Athletic Conference Semifinals as the third-seeded Ohio Wesleyan University Battling Bishops defeated the second-seeded Yeowomen 60-50 at Neal Fieldhouse on the campus of DePauw University.
The result ended Oberlin's season with a mark of 21-4, which tied the school record for wins in a season. Unluckily, on this night the Yeowomen suffered through one of their toughest shooting performances of the year, finishing at just 36.8 percent with 21 makes on 57 attempts as their 50 total points tied for their second-lowest scoring output of the campaign.
OWU carried just a 40-38 lead heading into the fourth quarter but used an 11-2 run to grab a 51-40 cushion with 5:29 left to play in the game. However, the Yeowomen wouldn't go down without a fight as Oberlin responded with a 10-2 burst of its own that featured four points from
Alyson Jefferson that trimmed the deficit down to three, 53-50, with 1:44 still to expire.
Unfortunately, the Bishops answered right back with four straight points while Oberlin was unable to convert down the stretch to allow OWU to hang on for the win.
First-year
Bryana Woodard led Oberlin with 12 points and 10 rebounds, marking her third double-double of the year.
Camille Zinaich and Jefferson each finished with 10 points.
Both sides were feeling each other out in the early going as Oberlin scored on its very first possession but went cold for the next four minutes until Jefferson's floater knotted the game at just 4-4. The Bishops later led 12-8 and eventually carried a slim 13-12 edge into the second quarter.
Cierra Joiner, who had 14 first-half points, hit a jumper to make it a 19-16 OWU advantage with 7:25 left in the period and it remained that way until
Maggie Balderstone came off the bench to cash in a 3-pointer from the near wing two minutes later to even the count at the 5:28 mark. The two foes would muster just five total points for the remainder of the half as senior
Sammy Spanier deposited a long-range strike from the far corner with 2:28 left in the opening half to give the Yeowomen a 22-21 halftime lead.
The scoring picked up on both ends of the floor in the third quarter. A Lauren Denison layup gave the Bishops a 34-28 cushion midway through the session but back-to-back triple-hits from
Gina Lombard later got the Yeowomen to within one at 37-36 but it was OWU who ultimately carried the 40-38 margin into the final frame.
Joiner led all scorers with 23 points, while Kasey Schipfer posted all 13 of her tallies in the second half. As a team, OWU shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) while winning the battle of the boards 38-28, marking just second time all season Oberlin had a double-digit rebounding deficit.
The Bishops will move into the NCAC Championship game to take on fourth-seeded Wittenberg as they upset top-seeded DePauw in the other semifinal.
The Yeowomen will bid farewell to seniors
Sammy Spanier,
Rowan Smith, and
Mia Woo but will welcome back a plethora of talent to make another run at an NCAC Championship next season.
