ADA, Ohio —
Jordanna Rauch (Fleming, Ohio/Warren) had her shot blocked at the buzzer as No. 5 ranked Ohio Northern University escaped with a 61-60 victory over Marietta College Thursday (Feb. 23) in the semifinals of the Ohio Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Tournament.
The top-seeded Polar Bears remain perfect on the season with a 26-0 record. Ohio Northern will host Wilmington College in the OAC Championship game on Saturday. Marietta finishes the season with a 16-11 record; the most wins since going 20-7 in 1989-90.
After losing to the Polar Bears by 39 points in their regular season finale less than a week ago, the Pioneers gave ONU all it could handle. Neither team led by more than five points in the first half as the first 20 minutes saw two ties and two lead changes. Ohio Northern led 34-30 at halftime.
The Polar Bears tried to pull away in the third quarter. ONU managed to push the lead to as many as 13 points in the period and had a 10-point lead, 53-43, heading into the fourth quarter.
Trailing by 12 points with 8:34 left in the game, Marietta went on an 11-0 run to get within one, 57-56, at the 3:42 mark.
Brooke Borich (Beverly, Ohio/Fort Frye) triggered the run with a three-pointer and a jumper in the paint. Treys from
Ashley Barker (Mogadore, Ohio/Mogadore) and Rauch accounted for MC's other six points in the run.
A jumper from ONU's Lindsay Black ended the Pioneer run. Rauch drained a jumper with 2:04 to play making it a one-point game, 61-60, once again. Neither team would score again.
Ohio Northern turned the ball over with 14 seconds left on the clock. The Polar Bears, with a foul to give, disrupted Marietta's possession by fouling with six seconds remaining. Following a Pioneer timeout, Rauch had her game-winning shot attempt blocked by Amy Bullimore as time expired.
Borich led Marietta with 15 points and five assists. Rauch finished with 11 points and
Amisha Herd (Zanesville, Ohio/West Muskingum) added 11 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Burkhardt chipped in with eight points and six boards.
Bullimore scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds to pace the Polar Bears. She also blocked five shots. Britt Lauck had 12 points and Amauria Campbell pulled down nine rebounds.
For the game, Marietta shot 32.2% (19-of-59) rom the floor, 28.6% (6-of-21) from three-point range and 76.2% (16-of-21) at the free throw line. Ohio Northern was 21-of-57 (36.8%) from the floor, 3-of-16 (18.8%) behind the arc and 94.1% (16-of-17) at the line.
The Polar Bears outrebounded Marietta 45-35. ONU committed 18 turnovers, while Marietta turned the ball over 11 times.
Fans can follow the Pioneers all season long at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter and Instagram.
