WESTERVILLE — Sophomore Kyla Irby earned Smokey Ballenger Classic Most Valuable Player honors after scoring 20 points to lead the Otterbein women's basketball team to a 60-56 win over Oberlin on the second and final day of the event on Monday.

The Basics

• Records: Otterbein (6-4 overall), Oberlin (7-5 overall)
• Venue: Rike Center - Westerville, Ohio
• The Smokey Ballenger Classic is a two-day, eight-game men's and women's basketball event collecting non-perishable food items for The Promise House and Westerville Area Resource Ministry (W.A.R.M.) and cash donations for the Coaches vs. Cancer cause. For more information, click here.
• Joining Irby on the All-Tournament Team were Oberlin's Angela Kumler, Hamilton's Taylor Lambo and Albion's Ava Guilford.

Otterbein Stat Leaders

• Irby was 5-of-7 from 3-point range and added four rebounds to her 20 points.
• Freshman Mattie Walburn added 10 points, two assists and two steals.
• Graduate student Kathleen DeCarlo posted eight points and four rebounds.
• Freshman Kiara Hudgins tallied seven points, three rebounds, two assists and three steals.
• Sophomore Anna Waskiewicz finished with seven points and four rebounds.
• Sophomore Abby Rawlings added two points and a team-best six assists.

Game Highlights

• First Quarter: A pair of 3-pointers from Irby helped Otterbein open up an early 6-2 lead, but Oberlin fought back to take a 10-8 edge. The Cardinals took a 14-12 lead into the second quarter.
• Second Quarter: Oberlin opened up a six-point lead, 27-21, with 1:27 left in the quarter, but Irby kept the Cardinals close with a 3-pointer to cut the deficit in half. Freshman Madilyn Stechschulte split a pair of free throws to get Otterbein within two, 27-25, going into halftime.
• Third Quarter: Oberlin increased its lead to eight, 39-31, with 3:19 left, but the Cardinals gradually cut into that margin as the quarter wound down. A layup from Stechschulte made it a five-point game with 1:46 remaining, and a pair of free throws from DeCarlo got Otterbein within three with 1:07 left. The Cardinals capped the scoring in the period with a jumper from DeCarlo to get within one, 41-40, going into the fourth.
• Fourth Quarter: Oberlin continued to lead until a jumper from Walburn put Otterbein up by one, 47-46, with 5:54 remaining. A free throw from DeCarlo followed by a 3-pointer from Irby increased the lead to five with 5:01 remaining. Oberlin fought back to take a one-point edge with 2:28 left before Irby tied the score at 54 with a free throw with 1:42 remaining. Hudgins followed with an and-1 with 1:33 left, and Otterbein never surrendered the lead for the remainder of the game. An Oberlin tip-in got the Yeowomen within two with 35 seconds left, but Rawlings made a pair of free throws at the other end with five seconds remaining to seal the victory.
• Key Team Stats: Otterbein shot 41.2% from the field and was 7-of-19 (36.8%) from 3-point range. Oberlin shot 42.9% from the field and was 4-of-18 (22.2%) from 3-point range. The Cardinals were 11-of-17 (64.7%) from the free-throw line, while the Yeowomen were 4-of-5 (80%). Oberlin out-rebounded Otterbein by a 34-32 margin.

Notables

• Irby made seven 3-pointers and averaged 21 points per game in Otterbein's two wins in the Smokey Ballenger Classic en route to earning MVP honors.
• Irby has scored in double figures in eight of 10 games this season and is averaging a team-high 14.5 points per game.
• Head coach Diana Noles is in her sixth year at Otterbein and has an all-time record of 69-57 at the helm of the Cardinals.
• Otterbein is 5-0 in the series against Oberlin dating back to 2010.