Box Score Photo GalleryWESTERVILLE, Ohio – A tough second-half for the Otterbein Cardinals proved costly Saturday afternoon, watching visiting University of Mount Union take control and pull away for a 78-65 win inside the Rike Center.
The victory for Mount Union posts a split between the schools in the season series, as Otterbein University pulled out a 71-70 win earlier this year in Alliance on a buzzer-beating layup from senior Madi Miller.
Otterbein (5-12, 2-8 OAC) grabbed an early 11-8 lead to start the rematch, but Mount Union (8-9, 4-6 OAC) countered with a quick 10-0 run to jump ahead by seven at the 12:19 mark of the opening period.
The Raiders built the lead to as many as 11 in the frame, but the Cardinals answered by scoring the final eight points of the half, including a last-second three-pointer from freshman Abby Miduri, to make it a one-possession game at the break.
The Cardinal offense went cold to begin the second half, scoring just six points over the initial 10 minutes as Mount Union built a 21-point advantage. Otterbein trimmed the lead down to 10 points late in the game, but would never fully recover as the Purple Raiders left with the win.
Junior Amariah Huck led the Cardinals in scoring for a third-straight game, scoring 16 points on a 6-of-14 effort from the field. She was the only player in double figures for the team.
Freshman Abby Miduri contributed eight points off the Cardinal bench while senior point guard Chelsea Reed dished out seven assists, putting her at 399 for her career.
Katie Reed dropped a game-best 20 points on the Mount Union side, with 17 of those coming prior to halftime.
Otterbein will hit the road to begin next week's action, traveling to Ohio Northern University Wednesday evening. ONU took the first meeting between the schools earlier this year in Westerville.
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