PHOTO GALLERY (coming soon)

WESTERVILLE, Ohio – A late comeback against rival Capital was nearly completed in the Rike Center on Saturday night, but a last-second layup for Otterbein unfortunately just rimmed out as the visiting Comets survived a hectic 78-76 finish.

The Cardinals, trailing by 13 points with six minutes to play, held Capital to just four points across the rest of regulation but were forced to settle a bucket short.

WHAT HAPPENED:

• A high-scoring first quarter saw Otterbein build a 19-10 lead before the Comets ended the frame on an 8-0 run.
   
• The second period was a one-possession battle for most of the way, seeing deadlocks at 19-19, 24-24, 37-37 and 38-38 until Capital ripped off another eight in a row to punctuate the frame.
   
• Otterbein found itself playing from behind the entire second half, looking up at a 13-point deficit approaching the end of the third quarter and then again midway through the fourth.
   
• The Cards kicked into gear by finishing the game on a 15-4 run, and it was almost enough. A three-point play from Maizie King made it a four-point gap with well over two minutes on the clock. Then, Otterbein only trailed 78-76 after timely buckets from Serenity Castle and Katie McCrary (1:01 left).
   
• Otterbein forced two Capital misses defensively, called a timeout and advanced the ball with six seconds left. The Comets had a foul to give, and gave it, before a driving layup attempt from Abby Rawling was deflected out of bounds with one second remaining.
   
• Following another timeout, head coach Diana Noles drew up a perfect inbounds play that generated a potential game-tying layup down the lane. Unfortunately, the ball just barely rimmed out and allowed the Comets to survive.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• Freshman Abby Rawlings scored a season-high 18 points to lead Otterbein, all coming on six trifectas behind the arc. Classmates Kyla Irby and Nicole Terry both scored 11, as the trio of newcomers represented 40 points altogether.
   
• Maddi Weiland (20), Bri O'Connor (18), Samaree Perkins (14) and Laney Murphy (13) spearheaded a balanced Capital offense. Perkins had a double-double as the OAC's leading rebounder pulled down 11 boards.
   
• Capital shot 54% for the game and both sides were at/around 50% from long range, going a combined 19 of 39 on three-pointers.
   
• The whistles were a plenty as 41 fouls were called, resulting in the Comets (21 of 25) and the Cards (16 of 22) spending quality time at the charity stripe.
   
• Otterbein held a 29-6 edge in bench scoring.

UP NEXT:

The Cardinals get on the road for a tough challenge come middle of next week, heading to play Ohio Northern (8-2 OAC) on Wednesday night.