March 28, 2024

Wittenberg women’s basketball is the runner-up for the North Coast Athletic Conference. They had to play three games in the postseason in their run to the championship game.

It all started on Feb. 20 as Wittenberg was one of the hosts for a quarterfinal game in the NCAC tournament. The Tigers played against the Hiram Terriers and defeated the Terriers 78 to 68.

There were three Wittenberg players that finished the game with double digits; they were freshmen Delaney Williams and Kristie Kalis and junior Sydney Mayle. Williams lead all scorers with 24 points, as she scored a majority of her points in the second half. Mayle recorded her third double-double of the year with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Kalis came off the bench to score 18 points.

The Tigers offensive game was incredible as they knocked down multiple shots from three-pointers, making free throws when they were fouled. Wittenberg led a majority of the night, even having a 22-point lead at the end of the third quarter. Hiram fought hard to cut the lead down; they were able get the lead down to eight points in the fourth quarter with less than five minutes remaining. The Tigers defense caused a lot of problems for the Terriers offense as they forced 18 turnovers, which resulted in 12 points for Wittenberg.

The Tigers played again on Friday as they traveled to play against the number one seeded DePauw Tigers.

On Friday, the Wittenberg Tigers upset DePauw, who were ranked sixth in the nation before the game. The final score of the game was 72-68. In this game, there were four players that scored more than 10 points; they were freshman Kalis who scored 12 points and juniors Alexis Kiess, Amanda Raber and Mayle, who each scored 15 a piece. The bench contributed 29 points. Wittenberg’s biggest lead was 18 points.

From the start of the game, Wittenberg took command of the game with a 21-11 lead. Wittenberg continued their shooting success by knocking down five out of eleven three-pointers. Wittenberg was able to capitalize at the free throw line as they made 22 out of 26 free throws. Wittenberg defense caused some problems for the DePauw offense; they created nine turnovers, which resulted in 10 points. DePauw made a late run in the fourth quarter, they cut the lead to two with 20 seconds left. They did this by making back-to-back three-pointers. Williams knocked down two clutch free throw attempts to seal the win.

On Saturday, Wittenberg played the Oberlin Yeowomen at DePauw University for the NCAC Championship. The Tigers last trip to the NCAC championship game was in 2014-15. Sadly, the Tigers were not able to bring home the title. The final score was 71-39.

The Yeowomen offense played extremely well while Wittenberg’s offense was ice cold; they didn’t score any points until 26 seconds left in the first quarter. Oberlin had the lead the entire game, but the Tigers fought hard to try and make the game competitive. Kalis lead all scorers with 19 points and grabbed five rebounds.

Despite losing the championship game, Wittenberg had two players selected to 2018 All-Tournament Team, Kalis and Williams. Wittenberg women’s basketball team finished the season with a winning record of 16-12. They are hoping to receive a bid to compete in the NCAA tournament.

 

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