Box Score COLUMBUS, Ohio – Sophomore
Heather Booth (Newport/Frontier) hit a pair of free throws and a jumper in the final 1:24 of play to give Marietta College a 54-53 win over Capital University in Ohio Athletic Conference women's basketball action Wednesday (Feb. 6) evening. The win snapped a 50-game losing streak against the Crusaders that dates back to the 1988-89 season.
Marietta (8-14 overall, 3-12 OAC) took advantage of Capital's cold shooting in the second half. The Crusaders were 11-of-33 (33.3%) from the floor in the second period, while the Pioneers shot 52.0% (13-of-25).
The game was close the entire 40 minutes as there were 12 ties and 18 lead changes. Neither team led by more than six points. Capital held a slim 24-20 lead at halftime.
Following a Marietta timeout, Booth hit a jumper to knot the game at 50-50 with 3:08 left on the clock. Capital missed the front end of the bonus twice before Booth stepped to the line and drained two giving Marietta the lead, 52-50, with 1:24 remaining.
The Crusaders missed a three-pointer on their next possession and Booth made them pay for it. Booth scored her final two points of the game and the Pioneers led 54-50 with just 28 seconds left.
Capital refused to go quietly. Simonne Gage missed a jumper but Stacy Timmerman grabbed the offensive rebound. Timmerman missed the follow-up but again got the rebound and kicked it out to Gage who nailed a three-pointer cutting the Pioneer lead to one, 54-53, with 11 seconds left.
Following a timeout from both teams. Marietta inbounded the ball and the Gage came up with a steal. Timmerman's last second shot was off the mark.
Booth led the Pioneers with 16 points. Sophomore
Candice Alexander (Fairborn/Fairborn) tallied a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 15 rebounds. Junior
Tori Dixon (Londonderry/Vinton County) chipped in with 12 points, while senior
Krissy Rowe (Toledo/Sylvania Southview) added nine points.
Timmerman finished with a game-high 20 points for the Crusaders. She pulled down eight rebounds, including six on the offensive end of the floor. Gage scored 10 points, while Cookie Geroski added five points and eight boards.
For the game, Marietta shot 40.7% (22-of-54) from the floor, 27.8% (5-of-18) from three-point range and 83.3% (5-of-6) at the line. Capital hit 21-of-60 (35.0%) from the floor, 3-of-9 (33.3%) behind the arc and 8-of-11 (72.7%) at the line.
Marietta won the battle of the boards 40-35. The Pioneers turned the ball over 19 times, while Capital committed 13 turnovers.
Marietta travels to Baldwin Wallace on Saturday (Feb. 9) for a 3:00 p.m. tip. Fans can catch the action live at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter.
