GAMBIER, Ohio - The Otterbein women's basketball team picked up a narrow road win against Kenyon College Sunday afternoon. The relatively close match ended with a Cardinal victory over the Owls, 57-50, thanks to an 8-0 run at the end of the final quarter. 

A second half turnaround made all the difference for the Cards as they scored 44 points in the second half alone, which was over triple the amount of points they tallied in the first half (13).
 

HOW IT WENT DOWN:

• A slow start for both teams ended the first quarter with 17 combined points, as the Cards managed an 11-6 lead.
   
• Both offenses came to more of a screeching halt during the second quarter, both scoring in single digits and Otterbein only adding a mere two points to its total. Kenyon claimed its first lead of the contest with just over a minute left before intermission, and stepped off the court with a 14-13 lead headed into halftime.
   
• Both teams came out with a dramatic boost to their offense after halftime, with Otterbein earning 22 points in the third quarter while taking advantage from points off turnovers. Kenyon hung close but the Cards would take a marginal 35-30 lead into the fourth quarter.
   
• The Owls grabbed some momentum midway through the final period with a 12-4 run to jump slightly ahead...
   
• Despite being down 50-49 with 1:40 remaining on the clock, the Cardinals shut down the Owls offensively and scored eight in a row to finalize the game. Kathleen DeCarlo and Olivia Majors scored the first two critical buckets (in the paint) of that run, before Jenna Hoschouer finished the job going 4 of 4 from the free throw line down the stretch.

 

STATS THAT MATTERED: 

• Otterbein and Kenyon shot 9 of 51 combined from the first half. Despite Otterbein shooting 22.2 percent, Kenyon somehow lead before intermission only shooting 12.5 percent (3 of 24).
   
• The Cardinals found 19 of their points off the bench while the Owls non-starters contributed 12.
   
• Otterbein dominated in the paint scoring 32 points from down low, which was double the amount Kenyon was able to produce.
   
•  The lead scorers from both teams were one point away from each another, as Hoschouer had 12 overall and Kenyon's Katie Orefice finished with a game-high 13.

FAMILIAR FACES:

The Cardinals entered Tomsich Arena and were greeted by former assistant coach Mary Corbett, who was both a graduate assistant and full-time assistant for the Cards after a productive playing career. She remains Otterbein's single-season record holder for best free-throw percentage by making 52 of 57 (.912). Corbett is now leading the 2022-23 Owls in her first season as a head coach.

UP NEXT:

The Cardinals will get right back on the road on Tuesday of next week, traveling up to Division 1 Kent State University for an exhibition with the Golden Flashes a 11 a.m.