WASHINGTON, PENNSYLVANIA – The Otterbein University women’s basketball team opened its season with a pair of victories, topping Defiance College 58-49 Friday evening and host Washington Jefferson College 70-59 Saturday afternoon at the W & J Tip-Off Tournament.

In addition, senior point guard Shea McCoy totaled 22 points over the two outings, giving her 1,002 for her career.

Otterbein trailed Defiance 26-18 at halftime on day one, and the Yellow Jackets kept the advantage by leading 37-30 with 11:25 to play in the second half.

The Cardinals continued to grind and eventually overcame their sluggish start, going on a 12-0 run to grab a 42-37 lead after a pair of free-throws from junior Hannah Day at the 6:38 mark.

Otterbein kept the momentum and pushed its lead to 52-42 with 3:25 showing on the game clock, and Defiance was unable to make any push down the stretch as the Cards preserved the win.

Seniors Kristi Kotterman and Shea McCoy combined for 26 points in the victory, while junior Rachel Snedegar came off the bench to contribute ten points and a team-high six rebounds.

The Cards shot just .339 for the game compared to Defiance’s .370, but the Otterbein defense was able to force the Yellow Jackets into committing 33 turnovers.

The team opened day two with a see-saw battle in the first half against Washington and Jefferson, but the Cards were able to string together a few possessions before halftime and take a 32-26 edge into intermission.

Another second-half run would be in sights yet again, as Otterbein extended a 50-43 lead to 60-44 with just over seven minutes to play. The Presidents would fight back and pull to within nine by the 3:12 mark, but the deficit would be too much as Otterbein ultimately prevailed 70-59.

Kotterman led all scorers with a new career-high of 30 points, including a 5-of-6 effort from three-point range. She also grabbed seven rebounds and converted all nine of her free-throw attempts en route to Most Valuable Player honors for the tournament.

McCoy scored ten points to surpass the 1,000 point plateau, while Snedegar chipped in eight points to go along with a team-best nine boards. Snedegar joined Kotterman on the All-Tournament team.

Otterbein buried 7-of-14 three-pointers in the contest, while Washington and Jefferson connected on just 7-of-21 from long range.

The Cards next travel to compete in the Ohio Northern Classic Nov. 26-27, opening against Ohio Wesleyan at 6 p.m.