Box Score
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WESTERVILLE, Ohio – The Cardinals saw a 16-point second half lead vanish, but managed to hang on for a 63-61 win over John Carroll University Wednesday night at the Rike Center.
The win gives Otterbein University a season-best seven-game winning streak and improves the team to 13-3 overall, 7-2 in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC). It is the team’s first winning streak of seven or more games since the 2005-06 season, when the Cardinals tallied off nine in a row. Meanwhile, the Blue Streaks fall to 3-6 in the OAC, 10-6 overall.
Otterbein held a 63-61 advantage with 58 seconds remaining in the game and had multiple opportunities to extend their lead in the final minute, but came up short.
Following a missed free throw with 19 seconds left, John Carroll rebounded the ball and attempted a go-ahead three-pointer by sophomore Emily Taylor that rimmed out and was rebounded by Otterbein.
After another missed free throw, John Carroll pushed the ball up-court only to have it deflected out-of-bounds underneath the Blue Streak basket with 0.5 seconds remaining. John Carroll sophomore Beth Switzler got off a last-second layup attempt, but it rimmed out and preserved the Otterbein victory.
Senior Hannah Day led three Cardinals in double figures with 16 points, including 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. Sophomore Tabatha Piper added 14, while classmate Chelsea Reed poured in a career-high 12 in the win.
John Carroll was led by junior Missy Spahar who posted a game-high 21. She surpassed 1,000 career points with her seventh point of the night.
Reed put in a layup with 11:06 remaining in the game to give the Cardinals a 50-34 advantage.
Otterbein maintained a double-digit advantage over the next five minutes until a jumper by Spahar cut the Cardinal lead to eight, 55-47, with 5:27 left in the game.
A pair of buckets by Piper extended the Cardinal lead to 61-50 with 3:54 remaining, but the Blue Streaks followed with an 11-2 run over the next two minutes, cutting the lead to two with 58 seconds remaining.
Otterbein will be back in action this Saturday, Jan. 19, when they host Muskingum for a 3 p.m. tip. The Cardinals edged the Muskies 66-63 in New Concord last month.
