BEREA, OHIO -- Junior center Lauren Forquer scored 15 points as the second-seeded Mount Union College women's basketball team defeated rival and third-seeded Baldwin Wallace University, 71-61, in the Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament semifinals this evening (Friday, February 26, 2010) at the Capital Center in Columbus.
With the win, the Purple Raiders improve to 23-4 overall and advance to the OAC Championship game tomorrow afternoon versus host and top-seeded Capital University. With the loss, the Yellow Jackets end their season at 19-8 overall.
In addition to Forquer for Mount Union, Rosa LaMattina scored 13 points, all in the second half, and Tessa Pohovey totaled 11 points and seven rebounds.
BW was led by junior guard Amanda Schroeder (Columbus Grove) with 14 points and five boards. Senior ESPN THE MAGAZINE Academic All-American center Ariel Brough (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) totaled 12 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots.
Key to victory for Mount Union was forcing 26 BW turnovers, including 15 in the second half, and hitting five three-pointers in the second period.
In the first half, Mount Union built a five-point lead at 12-7 when Kelly Evans scored on a layup at the 12:16 mark. BW answered with a 13-4 run and led by six at 20-14 when junior guard Ali Stack (Vermilion/Firelands) hit a layup at 5:36. The Yellow Jackets kept on the attack and eventually built their lead to 12, at 29-17, when Brough hit one of two free throws with 1:32 left in the period. The Raiders were able to end the half on a 6-2 run but BW led 31-23 at the break.
In the second half, the Purple Raiders jumped out of the gate with eight straight points in just two minutes and tied game at 31 apiece when Pohovey nailed a three-pointer at the 18:00 mark. BW responded out of a timeout and moved back ahead by five, at 41-36, following a jumper from sophomore forward Catherine Spisak (Sandusky/St. Mary's Central Catholic) at 13:05. Mount Union came back with an 11-2 run and led 47-43 when Kori Weidt connected on a three-pointer with 11:21 left to play.
Undaunted, BW scored six straight and led 49-47 when Schroeder hit a jumper at 9:22. The two sides then exchanged leads before the Raiders moved ahead for good with a 13-5 run ending in two Amanda Rose free throws that made the score 65-56 with 1:32 left to play. The largest Raider lead was 11, at 69-58, with 30 seconds remaining.
FOR MORE SPORTS INFORMATION, please contact Sports Information Director Kevin Ruple by telephone at 440-826-2327 and e-mail at kruple@bw.edu or Assistant SID Jeff Miller by phone at 440-826-2780 and email at jefmille@bw.edu. Fans can access the latest BW athletics information at www.BWyellowjackets.com and we invite you to join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/bwyellowjackets and Twitter at http://twitter.com/bwathletics.
