Greencastle, IN - The fourth-seeded Oberlin College women's basketball team punched a ticket to the North Coast Athletic Conference Championship game, defeating the top-seeded Tigers of Wittenberg 63-57 on Friday evening on the campus of DePauw University.
The win gives Oberlin its second trip to the NCAC title game in school history with its lone other visit to the final coming in 2018 when they knocked off these same Tigers, 71-39, to earn a berth into the NCAA Tournament.
Before fouling out with just under three minutes to go,
Alyson Jefferson was simply sensational for the Yeowomen as she led the way with 13 points, a season-high nine rebounds, and five assists.
Bryana Woodard added 12 points, while
Camille Zinaich turned in a double-double performance with 10 points and a season-high 13 rebounds.
The two foes went into the fourth tied at 47 but a bucket from Woodard and five straight points from Zinaich gave Oberlin a 55-50 cushion with 7:12 left to play. However, just three Tiger points were scored over the next four minutes of game play as the Yeowomen were clinging to a two-point advantage when Jefferson fouled out at the 2:51 mark.
Oberlin's scoring drought would finally come to an end at the 1:09 mark as first-year
Anora Lee sliced her way through the lane to make it a two-possession game. After the Tigers got back within a deuce, Zinaich drove to the lane and finished off a contested left-handed layup. Following an empty Wittenberg possession, Zinaich calmly deposited two charity tosses to extend the lead out to six with 25 seconds to go to effectively end the game.
Wittenberg raced out to an 8-0 lead in the first quarter but Oberlin settled in and only trailed 17-15 after the opening 10-minute stanza. The Tigers led by as many as seven in the second quarter but they ultimately settled for a 30-26 halftime advantage.
Oberlin found its rhythm in the third quarter, taking its first lead of the game on a pair of
Jaedyn O'Reilly free throws with 15 ticks left in the frame that made it 46-45.
The Yeowomen shot 36.8 percent (21-of-57) from the floor, but went 5-of-11 from distance for 45.5 percent success with three of those triple-hits coming courtesy of
Gina Lombard. The Tigers checked in at 31.3 percent (20-of-64), which included a subpar 1-of-10 showing from beyond the arc. OC bested Wittenberg 26-18 in the paint and saw its bench bunch outscore their counterparts 23-2.
The win moved Oberlin's record to 17-10 while the Tigers concluded their season at 21-5.
Tomorrow at 4 p.m., Oberlin will take on Ohio Wesleyan University for the NCAC crown.
