MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College women's basketball team won its fifth straight game after leading big at halftime, but having to hold on for a 80-75 victory over Capital University Wednesday (Jan. 31) evening in Ban Johnson Arena. The Pioneers improved to 15-5 overall and 10-3 in the Ohio Athletic Conference. Capital dropped to 14-6 overall and 9-4 in the OAC.
"We have a lot of respect for Capital, and we knew they would make a run in the second half," Marietta head coach
Kole Vivian said. "But I am happy we were able to get to the foul line and make our free throws.
Paige Tolson (Guysville, Ohio/Federal Hocking) was unbelievable tonight. She is without a doubt one of the best players on the league and she proved that tonight."
Both teams got off to slow starts, but Marietta was able to find the scoreboard first as
Olivia Gribble (Irwin, Pa./Norwin) hit a jumper.
Paige Tolson (Guysville, Ohio/Federal Hocking) came off the bench and hit the shot from the paint to give the Pioneers a 4-1 lead.
Kelly Levering (Powell, Ohio/Olentangy Liberty) made her presence felt as she scored a layup, and then followed up with a three-pointer to give Marietta a four point lead with six minutes remaining in a quarter. After a pair of Tolson layups,
Hannah Kroft (Marietta, Ohio/Marietta) provided a layup and Gribble nailed a jumper to give Marietta a 19-10 lead with 1:34 remaining. The Comets closed out the quarter on a 6-0 run as they got three pointers from Laney Murphy and Kendall Spreen, cutting the lead to 19-16 with Marietta leading going into the second period.
Marietta put together a strong offensive second quarter while holding the Comets to six points. Pioneers started the quarter on a 6-0 run with all the points coming from the paint. Later in the period, Tolson hit a trio of three-pointers to give the Pioneers a 16-point lead with 4 minutes left in the half. Neither team managed to get a bucket in the basket in the final 90 seconds and MC led 41-22 going into intermission.
Both teams experienced a reversal of fortunes in the third period as Capital furiously fought back into the game. After the two teams traded baskets, Capital went on an 11-0 run fueled by five points from Samaree Perkins. Capital would go on to close the quarter on a 6-0 run and only trailed Marietta 49-46 heading into the fourth quarter.
Capital's Demi Brewer nailed a jumper at the 8:22 mark to put the score at 50-all, the first tie since the very beginning of the game. Marietta was able to extend the lead to four as Gribble fired up a three-pointer, but Brewer answered with a three of her own. A pair of Perkins' free throws gave Capital their first lead of the game with 5:51 remaining. On the next Pioneer possession, Bri O'Connor fouled Levering to put Marietta in the bonus. Marietta took full advantage by hitting free throw after free throw, going an incredible 24-for-32 from the charity stripe in the quarter. Capital could not overcome the gap and Marietta would hold on for the victory, 80-75.
Tolson led the Pioneers with a career-high 29 points, hitting ten clutch points from the free throw line. Levering finished with 12 points and pulled down nine rebounds.
Perkins led the Comets with 19 points.
Marietta again plays at home this Saturday (Feb. 3) as they battle Ohio Northern University on Saturday (Feb. 3). Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
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 X and Instagram.
