ALLIANCE, Ohio — The Marietta College women's basketball team enjoyed a first half lead, only to lose the lead with some poor shooting in the second half.  A Pioneer game-tying three pointer in the final seconds of regulation forced overtime, though, and then the Pioneers controlled the bonus period to defeat Mount Union, 76-70, on Wednesday (Jan. 7) evening. Marietta improves to 7-7 on the season and 2-3 in the OAC. The Purple Raiders fall to 10-4 overall and 2-3 in conference games.
 
"Tonight was another all-out group effort by our team," said Marietta head coach Jenna Andersen.  "We got out to a great start, which helped propel us to having a good lead at the half. Mount is a very good team and was able to chip away and take the lead in the fourth, but we never gave up. Huge shot by Kelsey to tie it up, a nice birthday present to herself. So proud of this group."
  
Both teams battled out to a 6-all tie in the first five minutes of the quarter, but after a layup and bonus free throw from Abby Garner (Macedonia, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) and a three pointer from Sophie Nelson (Parkersburg, W.Va./Ritchie County), the Pioneers enjoyed a four-point advantage.  After the Raiders cut the lead to one at the 2:08 mark, the Pioneers got jumpers from Amelia Uhrig (Chillicothe, Ohio/Unioto) and Kelsey Harlan (Sardis, Ohio/River) to close out the quarter and Marietta led 19-16 heading into the second stanza. 
 
Marietta began on a 7-0 run to push the lead to 10 in early action of the second quarter.  Later, the Pioneers got a pair of baskets from Kendall Sury (Waterford, Ohio/Waterford) and another four points from Harlan to take a 14-point lead.  Mount Union got the only points of the final minute as McKalya Dunkle scored a layup, cutting the Marietta lead to 36-24 lead going into intermission.

Marietta opened the second half with a layup from Urhig, but went scoreless for the next four minutes.  The Purple Raiders went on a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to single-digits.  Later in the period, the Purple Raiders scored on three consecutive layups and cut the lead to six points, 48-42, going into the final quarter.
 
The Pioneers got the first bucket of the fourth quarter, but the Purple Raiders continued to come back as they scored seven straight points to cut the lead to a single point.  Sury slowed the rally with a layup and bonus free throw for the Pioneers, but Mount Union answered with a 9-0 run, including a go-ahead layup by Bree McCabe, to lead by five with five minutes of regulation remaining.  Later in the period, the Pioneers fought back to tie as Ava Heller (Thornville, Ohio/Sheridan) buried a three pointer.
 
The Purple Raiders regained the advantage with a layup by Tess Conroy at the 1:21 mark and looked like they were going to close out the contest as Lily Scott was fouled with :05 seconds left on the clock.  Scott made the first free throw to extend the lead to three, but missed the second.  Sury got the rebound and called the quick timeout to give the Pioneers one last chance.  Harlan got the inbound, quickly stepped up to the arc, and nailed the shot as the buzzer went off, tying the game at 63 and forcing overtime.
 
Conroy opened the overtime session with five points for the Purple Raiders, but Marietta would go on a 10-0 run at the most crucial time, including eight points from Harlan, to take back control of the game.  Mount Union could not answer, except for a final layup in the final seconds by Conroy, and Marietta would go on to collect an exciting 76-70 overtime conference victory. 

Harlan led the Pioneers with 21 points, dished out seven assists, and collected seven steals.  Sury scored 12 points and 11 rebounds.  Heller finished with 11 points.  Uhrig scored 10 points and collected eight rebounds.  
 
Tess Conroy led Mount Union with 18 points and Elizabeth Mason had a double-double, scoring 11 points and collecting 12 rebounds.  

Marietta will return to road this Saturday (Jan. 10) as they will battle Heidelberg in a men's/women's doubleheader.  Tip-off for the women's game is set for 3 p.m. with the men's game scheduled for 1 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.