Box Score
Ohio Wesleyan 79, Oberlin 71

Sophomore post Alyssa Griner (Delaware/Hayes) scored 5 points and junior guard Kasey Schipfer (Mechanicsburg) and junior guard Lauren Denison (Pataskala/Watkins Memorial) each had 4 points during an 18-0 second-half run that turned the game around while the Ohio Wesleyan defense clamped down and allowed Oberlin only 5 points during a stretch of nearly 12 minutes as the Bishops defeated the Yeowomen in the North Coast Athletic Conference tournament championship game on Saturday in Greencastle, Ind.

The win gives Ohio Wesleyan its first NCAC tournament title since the 2008-09 season and sends the Bishops on to the NCAA Division III tournament, scheduled to begin next week.  The NCAA Division III tournament bracket will be revealed on Monday.

Ohio Wesleyan trailed, 55-44, with 2:44 left in the third quarter when the Bishops scored the final 9 points of the period.  Schipfer sank a pair of free throws, Denison contributed a jumper from the lane, freshman guard Mia Guscoff (Canton/Massillon Perry) knocked down a 3-pointer, and Denison finished off the quarter with a jumper to bring the Bishops within 55-53.

The Bishops opened the period with a 9-0 run that started with baskets by Griner and Schipfer before a hoop and a free throw from Griner and a jumper by junior guard Elizabeth Homan (Cincinnati/Anderson) that made it 62-55 midway through the quarter.

Buckets by Denison and Griner extended the lead to 66-57, and a pair of Schipfer free throws and a Griner basket stretched the margin to 72-60 with 1:34 remaining.

Oberlin closed to within 72-64 with buckets from Bryana Woodard and Camille Zinaich, but the Bishops iced the game at the free throw line, with Schipfer, Homan, and Griner combining to go 7-for-8 from the stripe during the final 40 seconds.

Each team held a 4-point lead during the first quarter, which ended with the Bishops up, 22-20, and the second quarter was more of the same, with Ohio Wesleyan taking an early 24-20 lead on a Homan lay-in and Oberlin coming back to take a 33-29 lead on a Jaedyn O'Reilly jumper with 3:10 remaining in the half.  Zinaich's lay-in with :22 to play gave the Yeowomen a 38-37 lead at the intermission.

Oberlin threatened to pull away during the third period, extending the lead to 52-42 on 3-pointers from Alyson Jefferson and Gina Lombard, and a 3-pointer from Woodard gave the Yeowomen their biggest lead of the game at 55-44 with 2:44 to go.

Schipfer led the Bishops with 22 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists.  Schipfer received the Nan Nichols Award as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player after averaging 24.0 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.7 steals per game during the 3-game run.  Schipfer's 22 points in the championship game also raised her career total to 1015, making her the 18th Ohio Wesleyan women's basketball player to surpass the 1000-point mark.

Homan scored 16 points and added 3 assists and 4 steals and was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 14.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.3 assists during the 3 games.  Schipfer and Homan were joined on the all-tournament team by Lombard and Zinaich of Oberlin, Diana Burger of DePauw, and Evie Wolshire of Wittenberg.

Griner finished with 18 points, capping a 3-game run in which she averaged 10.7 points per game.

Box Score