Box Score

WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Otterbein women's basketball team improved to 2-0 on the young season with a 62-59 victory over Wittenberg on Friday night on day one of the Washington and Jefferson Tournament inside Henry Memorial Center.
 
Senior forward Amariah Huck, who tallied 10 points and seven rebounds, connected on a pair of clutch free throws to give the Cards a three-point lead over the Tigers with eight seconds left in the game.
 
Otterbein began the game on a 5-0 scoring run following a three-pointer by junior guard Marissa Sheets and a fast-break layup by Huck. Wittenberg then scored two-straight baskets to cut the Cardinal lead to one, before the Cards ended the quarter with a 12-11 advantage.
 
The Cardinals opened the second period with yet another 5-0 run, jumping out to a 16-11 lead with 9:39 remaining in the first half. Freshman guard Dani Kissel 

continued her solid shooting year from behind the arc, connecting on a three-pointer at the 7:55 mark to give Otterbein an 18-15 lead.
 
Sheets added another three-pointer with under six minutes left until halftime, before Otterbein took a slim 29-26 lead at the break. Kissel led the Cards with nine points at the half on 4-of-7 shooting, while Sheets and junior forward Taylor Pifher each checked in with six points apiece.
 
Sophomore guard Abby Miduri opened the second half scoring seven of the team's first nine points, notching seven-straight points in a span of two minutes to give the Cards a 38-30 lead at the 5:18 mark. Sophomore forward Kierstin Taylor then increased the Otterbein lead with 2:24 left in the period, converting a layup in the paint to give the team a 42-33 lead. Wittenberg managed to battle back late in the quarter, eventually trailing 44-39 heading into the final period.
 
The Tigers pulled to within two points at 44-42 early in the final period, before the Cardinals went on a 10-0 run to post their largest lead of the night at 54-42 with 7:06 remaining. Wittenberg put together a 6-0 run a minute later to pull to within six points of the Cards, before a jumper by Taylor ignited a 5-0 run to help the squad regain its double-digit advantage with 4:37 left in the game.
 
Wittenberg managed to cut its deficit to a one-possession game with 1:15 left to play, before solid ball handling and free throw shooting by Otterbein proved to be the decisive factor. The Tigers' Becca Ziska led all scorers with 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including a 5-of-10 mark from three-point range.
 
Kissel paced the Cardinal scoring effort with 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting, including a 2-of-4 mark from distance. Miduri followed with 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting, tallying four assists, four rebounds, and three steals. Taylor chipped in 10 points of her own, as six different Cardinal players totaled six or more points on the night.
 
Otterbein is scheduled to play Washington and Jefferson in the tournament championship game tomorrow at 3 p.m.