TIFFIN, OHIO  – Sophomore guard Jessica Lairson (Louisville/ Senior) scored 15 points as the Baldwin-Wallace College women's basketball team beat Heidelberg University, 67-48, tonight (Wednesday, January 25, 2012) in an Ohio Athletic Conference game in the Seiberling Gymnasium.  This was the second and final regular season meeting between the teams.

With its victory, B-W improved to 10-7 overall and 5-5 in the OAC. The Yellow Jackets have won four of their last six games. With its loss, Heidelberg fell to 4-13 overall and 1-9 in the OAC and lost for the fifth straight time. 

In addition to Lairson for the B-W, sophomore forward Lexi Rohrbach (Tiffin/ Columbian) with 11 points. Lairson and Rohrbach tied for game-high rebounding honors with seven each. Heidelberg was led by sophomore guard Kathleen Phillips with a game-high 18 points.

The Yellow Jackets jumped out to a 3-0 lead at the 18:43 mark when Lairson canned a three-pointer. Heidelberg came right back to make it a 3-2 game at the 18:19 mark when senior guard Jazmine Shaw grabbed an offensive rebound and scored. Lairson then gave B-W a 5-2 lead at 16:51 when she made a layup and the Yellow Jackets increased it to 7-2 when sophomore backup center Natalia Simovic (Seven Hills/ Normandy) made a layup at 15:27.

Heidelberg cut the lead to 7-5 when Phillips scored, was fouled and made a free throw at 15:11. The Student Princes gained an 8-7 lead at 14:52 when sophomore guard Emily Giel canned a triple. Following a basket by each team and then almost four minutes of scoreless play, Phillips made one of two foul shots at 9:50 to give Heidelberg a 11-9 advantage and then a 13-9 lead at 9:03 when she canned a jumper.

The Heidelberg lead grew to 15-9 at the 7:15 mark when Phillips made a jump shot. Simovic ended a 7-0 Student Prince run when she scored on a layup at 7:02, was fouled and completed the three-point play by making her charity toss to make the score 15-12. B-W then closed to 15-14 when Rohrbach scored at 6:33, was fouled, but missed the foul shot.

After Heidelberg took an 18-14 lead on a trey by Giel at 6:17, Rohrbach countered for B-W with a layup at 5:51 to make it 18-16 and then Simovic tied it at 18-18 at 3:39 when she grabbed an offensive rebound and scored. The Jacket run continued as they regained the lead at 20-18 at 2:16 when Lairson canned a pair of foul shots and then built it to 22-18 at 1:36 when freshman guard Audrey Smolik (Strongsville) drove to the hole and scored.

Undaunted, Heidelberg tied it at 22-22 when it received a layup by freshman guard Paige Ricketts at 1:21 and a jumper by Phillips with 54 seconds left. Following a jumper by Lairson with 34 seconds left to make it 24-22, Ricketts tied it at 24-24 with 14 secnds left. She also was fouled and had a chance to give the Student Princes a one-point lead, but missed her foul shot.

In the second half, the Student Princes gained a 27-24 lead at 19:01 when sophomore guard Megan Miller canned a three-poinyer. B-W got one point back at 18:46 when junior point guard Rachel Rossman (Olmsted Falls) made one of two foul shots and then took a 28-27 advantage at 17:40 when junior All-OAC forward Jessica Carpenter (North Canton/ Hoover) made a triple. The lead grew to 30-27 at 17:06 when Lairson made a jumper and the run reached 9-0 when Carpenter canned another trey at 16:58.

Heidelberg junior guard Jordan Ickes made it a 33-28 game at 16:43 when she made one of two foul shots, but Rohrbach pushed the lead to 35-28 with a pair of foul shots at 16:20. B-W then outscored the Student Princes 15-6 to build its lead to 16 points at 50-34 with 9:58 left when Rossman made one of two foul shots.  The largest lead for B-W was 21 points at 63-42 with 2:42 left when freshman forward Laurel Thomas (Canton/ Central Catholic) made a layup.

The Yellow Jackets are back in action on Saturday, January 28 when they will host Wilmington College in the first game of a men's and women's OAC and SportsTime Ohio doubleheader at 2:00 p.m. The women's game will be broadcast on Saturday at 11:00 p.m. Additionally, fans can listen to both men's and women's games can live on campus radio station WBWC 88.3 FM, or via the internet at www.wbwc.com.  

Media and fans are reminded that the B-W will televise its men's and women's basketball doubleheader on SportsTime Ohio. The games are on Saturday, February 18 versus Ohio Northern University. B-W has broadcast more of its athletics events on regional cable TV than any other Division III school.

FOR MORE B-W 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 B-W athletics information at www.bw.edu/athletics and we invite you to join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/bwyellowjackets and Twitter at http://twitter.com/bwathletics.