The Ohio Wesleyan University women's basketball team will face Baldwin Wallace in a third-round game of the NCAA Division III tournament at 5 p.m. (Central Daylight Time) on Friday at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Ill.

In Friday's other third-round game, Illinois Wesleyan will host Wisconsin-Oshkosh at 7:30 p.m. (CDT).  The winners of Friday's games will meet in a national quarterfinal game at 7:30 p.m. (CDT) on Saturday.

Ohio Wesleyan (25-3) was an at-large selection to the NCAA Division III tournament.  The Battling Bishops won the North Coast Athletic Conference championship with a 14-0 record, then fell to Wittenberg by a count of 56-54 in the semifinals of the NCAC tournament on Feb. 28.  Ohio Wesleyan was ranked No. 16 in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association poll dated March 4 and No. 18 in the D3hoops.com poll dated March 3.  Ohio Wesleyan advanced in the NCAA Division III tournament with wins over Immaculata (87-42) and Washington & Jefferson (78-65).  Ohio Wesleyan is making its third consecutive and its ninth overall NCAA Division III playoff appearance.  The Bishops have advanced to the sectional semifinals (final 16 teams) for the first time since the 2001-02 season.  Ohio Wesleyan finished third in the NCAA Division III tournament in the 2000-01 season.

Fifth-year guard Kasey Schipfer (Mechanicsburg) leads the Bishops with an average of 19.8 points per game.  Sophomore post Macy Miller (Marysville/Milford Center Fairbanks) adds 16.0 points and a team-best 8.8 rebounds per game.  Fifth-year point guard Elizabeth Homan (Cincinnati/Anderson) follows with 8.8 points per game and leads Ohio Wesleyan with an average of 7.2 assists per contest.

Baldwin Wallace (28-1) won the Ohio Athletic Conference tournament by defeating Ohio Northern, 64-60, in the championship game.  The Yellow Jackets finished atop the OAC standings with an 18-0 record in regular-season play.  Baldwin Wallace was ranked No. 7 in the D3hoops.com poll dated March 3 and No. 10 in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association poll dated March 4.  Baldwin Wallace advanced in the NCAA Division III tournament with wins over La Roche (63-53) and Washington & Lee (75-71).  Baldwin Wallace is making its sixth consecutive and 19th overall NCAA Division III tournament appearance.  The Yellow Jackets advanced to the sectional semifinals (final 16 teams) in last year's tournament, falling to Bowdoin by a score of 78-48.  Ohio Wesleyan and Baldwin Wallace have met once in the NCAA Division III tournament, that coming in a national quarterfinal game on March 10, 2001, with Ohio Wesleyan winning by a score of 66-64 in Berea, Ohio.

Senior guard-forward Caely Ressler leads Baldwin Wallace with an average of 11.4 points per game and adds 6.5 rebounds per contest.  Senior guard Emily Irwin adds 9.5 points and a team-best 2.3 assists per game, and senior forward Bella Vaillant averages a team-high 6.9 rebounds per outing.

Illinois Wesleyan (28-1) won the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin tournament with a 95-86 win over Carroll in the championship game.  The Titans finished atop the CCIW standings with a 15-1 record in regular-season play.  Illinois Wesleyan was ranked No. 4 in both the D3hoops.com poll dated March 3 and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association poll dated March 4.  Illinois Wesleyan advanced in the NCAA Division III tournament with wins over Centre (95-57) and Trine (82-50).  Illinois Wesleyan is making its second consecutive and 16th overall NCAA Division III tournament appearance.  The Titans advanced to the second round in last year's tournament, falling to Wartburg by a score of 62-59.  Illinois Wesleyan won the NCAA Division III championship in 2011-12 and finished fourth in 2010-11.  Ohio Wesleyan and Illinois Wesleyan have met once in the NCAA Division III tournament, that coming in a first-round game on March 6, 2009, with Illinois Wesleyan winning by a score of 80-51 in Bloomington, Ill.

Senior guard Lauren Huber leads Illinois Wesleyan with averages of 15.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game.  Junior guard Ava Bardic follows with 15.0 points per game, senior guard Mallory Powers averages 11.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per outing, and senior guard Kate Palmer contributes 11.2 points per contest.  Junior guard Sawyer White leads the Titans with an average of 2.8 assists per game.

Wisconsin-Oshkosh (25-4) was an at-large selection to the NCAA Division III tournament.  The Titans won the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin championship with an 11-3 record, then fell to Wisconsin-Whitewater, 64-61, in the championship game of the WIAC tournament on March 1.  Wisconsin-Oshkosh was ranked No. 11 in the D3hoops.com poll dated March 3 and No. 13 in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association poll dated March 4.  Wisconsin-Oshkosh advanced in the NCAA Division III tournament with wins over Calvin (61-52) and Bethel (Minn.) (59-49).  Wisconsin-Oshkosh is making its sixth consecutive and 20th overall NCAA Division III tournament appearance.  The Titans advanced to the sectional semifinals (final 16 teams) in last year's tournament, falling to Smith by a count of 61-59.  Wisconsin-Oshkosh won the NCAA Division III championship in 1995-96 and finished as national runner-up in 1994-95.  Ohio Wesleyan and Wisconsin-Oshkosh have never met on the hardwood.

Fifth-year forward Kayce Waile leads Wisconsin-Oshkosh with averages of 12.1 points and 8.5 rebounds per game.  Sophomore guard Sammi Beyer follows with an average of 10.6 points per game.  Junior guard Kate Huml leads the Titans with 2.7 assists per game.

The winner of Saturday's national quarterfinal game will compete in the national semifinals, scheduled to be played on Friday, March 20, in Salem, Va.

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