TIFFIN, Ohio – Senior All-Ohio Athletic Conference and Academic All-OAC point guard Mackenzie Colombo (Strasburg) scored a career-high 25 points and dished out a game-high four assists to anchor the Baldwin Wallace University women's basketball team's 69-54 OAC victory against Heidelberg University in the Seiberling Gymnasium.
BW (6-0, 3-0 OAC), who is off to its best start since the 2010-11 when it started 7-1, had four players score in double figures led by Colombo as she scored 16 of her 25 in the second half. Sophomore guard Hannah Fecht (Hilliard/Davidson) recorded 12 points off the bench. Senior All-OAC and Academic All-OAC forward Sydney Clark (Parma/Lake Ridge Academy) tallied 11 points and senior All-0AC forward Clara Lemmon (Canton/Louisville) contributed 10 points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds.
Heidelberg (2-5, 1-2 OAC) had two players score in double figures led by Mariah Pearson as she scored 14 points. Marisa Liburdi chipped in 12 points and Carli Patrick grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds.
In the first quarter, BW jumped out to a 6-0 advantage when Clark scored on a layup at the 8:23 mark. The Berg responded with a 4-0 run to cut the lead down to 6-4 on a layup by Maddie Stiles at 6:47. Fecht knocked down a pair of three-pointers to the Yellow Jackets a 12-6 lead at the 5:56 mark. Heidelberg responded with a 6-0 run to tie the game at 12-12 on a jumper by Liburdi at 3:33. The Berg outscored BW 5-3 down the stretch and led 17-15 after one period of play.
The Yellow Jackets opened the second quarter on a 11-4 run to take a 26-21 lead on layup by junior forward Megan Schubert (Defiance/Ayersville) at the 6:13 mark. Heidelberg answered back with an 8-2 run to take a 29-28 lead on a layup by Theresa Jackson at 3:36. BW responded with a 5-0 lead to take a 33-29 advantage on a layup by Colombo at the 2:24 mark. The Berg closed out the half on an 8-4 run to take a 37-36 lead into halftime.
The Yellow Jackets opened the third quarter on a 9-3 run to take a 45-40 lead when Colombo hit a pair of free throws at the 6:07 mark. BW closed the period on a 9-6 run and led 54-46 after three stanzas.
Both teams scored one bucket each during the first 4:33 minutes of the fourth quarter to make the score 56-48. The Yellow Jackets outscored Heidelberg 13-6 the remainder of the game. BW scored its final points as junior Academic All-OAC guard Katie Smith (Fairview Park/Fairview) split a pair of free throws with 23 seconds left.
The Yellow Jackets are back in action on Saturday, December 17 when they close out their six-game road swing as it travels to Bexley for an OAC showdown against Capital University in the Capital Center at 3 p.m. BW returns home to friendly confines of the Ursprung Gymnasium for only the second time this season as it hosts a non-conference game against Ohio Wesleyan University on Monday, December 19 at 6 p.m.
