COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Marietta College women's basketball team played well, but a costly third quarter was the difference as the Pioneers dropped a close conference matchup to Capital University, 59-58, on Saturday (Dec. 6) afternoon.  The Pioneers drops to 4-5 overall and 0-1 in the Ohio Athletic Conference.  Capital improves to 8-0 overall and 2-0 in the OAC.

"I'm proud of the heart and grit we showed tonight," Marietta head coach Jenna Andersen said.  "We played so tough, just couldn't get the last shot to fall. We are getting better every game, and we will keep working every day to make improvements and adjustments." 

Marietta was able to find the scoreboard first as Kelsey Harlan (Sardis, Ohio/River) nailed a jumper and TJ Carpenter (Jackson, Ohio/Jackson) followed with a layup to give the Pioneers a quick 4-0 lead.  The Comets fought back to tie as Kendall Spreen hit from beyond the arc and, after Kya Jordan hit a mid-range jumper of her own, Capital led for the first time, 12-10.   Capital extended the lead with another three from Spreen, but the Pioneers fought back with a pair of layups from Harlan and closed out the quarter with a shot from the paint by Amelia Uhrig (Chillicothe, Ohio/Unioto), giving Marietta a 16-15 lead going into the second period.

The second quarter saw five lead changes and two ties in the first five minutes as the Pioneers got key buckets from Harlan, Uhrig, and Sarah Podkul (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield Area) to keep the contest close.  Late in the period, Harlan scored on a driving layup with :26 seconds remaining and Marietta led 26-24 going into intermission.
 
Marietta hit pair of shots to begin the third, but Capital went on an 17-2 run to retake the lead and push out to a 12-point advantage.   Abby Garner (Macedonia, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) stopped the momentum with a three-pointer with 2:30 remaining, getting the Pioneers back on track.  Kendall Sury (Waterford, Ohio/Waterford) got a big layup a minute later to cut the lead to five and closed out the period with a shot from the paint in the final seconds to cut the Comet lead to 46-43 heading into the fourth quarter.

Marietta got the first two baskets to fall in the fourth quarter and found themselves back in the lead.  After some traded shots, Capital got a huge three-pointer from Jordan at the 5:20 mark to put the Comets back into the lead by one.  Two minutes later, the lead swapped again as Sury converted a layup to give the Pioneers a late lead.  On the next possession, the Comets got a huge offensive rebound and putback from Samaree Perkins to give them a one-point advantage.  The Pioneers had four opportunities in the closing moments but could not get another shot to fall and Capital would squeak out a 59-58 victory.
 
Sury and Harlan both led the Pioneers with 12 points apiece with Sury getting her first collegiate double-double, collecting 10 rebounds.  Uhrig and Carpenter finished with 10 points apiece with Carpenter leading the team with four assists.
 
Perkins also had a double-double as she led the Comets with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Tahirah Ellis also scored 17 points and dished out three assists

Marietta returns to the road next Sunday (Dec. 14) as they battle Baldwin Wallace University in a rare Sunday afternoon matchup.  The tip-off is scheduled to begin at 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.