WESTERVILLE, OHIO – Otterbein University, ranked 24th-nationally by D3hoops.com, earned a split at its annual Smokey Ballenger Classic to move to 10-2 on the season.
The Cardinals flew past Bluffton University (2-8) 100-49 on day one before suffering a 75-74 upset loss to Case Western Reserve University (7-4) on day two.
Day 1 - Otterbein vs. Bluffton
The Cardinals jumped all over Bluffton early, taking a 32-10 lead midway through the first half and playing to a commanding 62-20 lead by halftime.
Freshman point guard Chelsea Reed turned in an impressive 13 assists in the first half, while junior Chelsea Cannon had 13 points for an Otterbein team that went into intermission with a 16-0 edge in fast break points.
Otterbein kept the momentum rolling into the second half, taking an 86-32 lead by the 10:32 mark of the second half and eventually hitting 100 points on a pair of Alayna Barnes free-throws with 2:02 remaining.
The 100 points was six shy of a program record. The Cards posted 106 points against Kenyon during the 1982-83 season, and again vs. Muskingum during the 2005-06 campaign.
Reed finished the game with a career-high 16 assists, falling two shy of Rhonda Scharf’s school and Ohio Athletic Conference record of 18 set against Ohio Wesleyan in the 1986-87 season.
Senior Shea McCoy led all five Cardinals in double figures, scoring 16 points on 7 of 12 shooting. Kristi Kotterman and Madi Miller each scored 14, while Cannon and Hannah Day posted 13 and 11, respectively.
Otterbein shot a solid .531 from the field while the Beavers managed to shoot just .274. The Cardinals held a 29-5 advantage in points off turnovers and 22-6 edge in second-chance points.
Day 2 – Otterbein vs. Case Western
The Spartans hopped out to an early 10-2 lead, but Otterbein bounced right back with a 14-0 run to seize a 16-10 lead at the 12:55 mark.
Case Western closed to within three as the Otterbein post players battled foul trouble, but the Cardinals pushed the margin back to nine, at 27-18, after a pair of makes at the charity stripe from junior Bourke Kelley.
The Spartans battled back in the closing minutes of the first half as Otterbein took a 35-31 edge into the break.
Junior Rachel Snedegar contributed seven points, four rebounds, and four steals off the bench in the opening stanza. Kelley also gave solid minutes, registering six rebounds and two blocks.
Case Western trimmed the Otterbein lead to 37-36 over the opening minute of the second half, and later forced a Cardinal timeout after tying the game at 51-51.
The visitors kept the momentum and assumed a 60-55 advantage with under ten minutes to play, but Otterbein responded with five-straight points to tie the game at 60-60 with 8:37 showing on the game clock.
Both sides would be tied at 65-65 and 68-68 before an old-fashioned three-point play by Kotterman put Otterbein ahead 71-70 with 2:20 to play.
A Case Western layup broke a 72-72 tie with 44 seconds left, and the Spartans split a pair of free throws after stopping Otterbein to hold a 75-72 lead with 10.7 seconds to go.
Unfortunately, Otterbein was only able to manage a last-second layup off a missed three-pointer en route to its second defeat of the season.
Kotterman and Case Western’s Erin Hollinger tied for a game-high 20 points, while McCoy and Hannah Day each scored 15 for Otterbein. The 20 points moves Kotterman past Sara Fee for 13th on the program's all-time scoring list.
The Cardinals committed just 13 turnovers compared to 22 for CWRU, but Case held a 45-35 edge in rebounding.
Otterbein returns to action Wednesday, Jan. 4 when its travels to take on cross-town rival Capital University. Tip-off from Bexley is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
