Alliance, Ohio- Women's basketball found themselves in a tightly contested battle Saturday afternoon on the road at Mount Union. The Cardinals led the Purple Raiders late in the game before an and-one conversion by Haile Peoples-O'Neil gave Mount a two point lead with just three seconds showing on the clock. Otterbein got a great look at sending the contest into overtime, but Abbie Scholz shot in the paint rolled off the rim as the buzzer sounded, and Mount escaped with a 66-64 victory after a hard fought 40 minutes of action.

The loss drops the Cardinals to 9-6 on the season, and even within Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) action, at 4-4. Mount Union improves its record to 9-6 overall, and 3-5 within the OAC.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Cards jumped out to an early lead, going up 15-7 in the first quarter, thanks to a 3-5 effort from behind the arch.
   
• In the second quarter Mount Union chipped away at the lead, but never got within six of the Cards.
   
• Otterbein carried a 31-24 lead into the half, Jenna Hoschouer led the way with nine points at the break.
   
• The host Purple Raiders started the second half putting pressure on the Cards, pulling within two before Otterbein found its rhythm and stretched the lead back up to nine.
   
• Mount was able to finally tie things back up at 1:11 remaining in the third, 49-49. Over that final minute only one basket was scored, and Otterbein led by two heading into the final frame.
   
• Both teams battled back-and-fourth in the final 10 minutes, with Mount leading by as many as six, but neither team could pull away.
   
• Mount took the final lead of the game with 3.1 seconds left, and the Scholz shot came up just short ad time expired.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• Both sides each led the game by as many as eight points.
   
• The Cards converted 12 Mount turnovers into 20 points.
   
• Anika Sweeney led all scorers with 20 points, while Angelia Jackson led the Cardinal offense with 15 of her own.
   
• The lead changed eight total times, including three times over the final six minutes of the game, with Mount gaining the lead for the final time with just 3.1 seconds left.

UP NEXT:

• Otterbein will return home for a matchup with Ohio Northern on Wednesday, game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.