Allegheny Uses 14-1 Run Out of Halftime to Get Past Scots

WOOSTER, Ohio – Clinging to a two-point halftime lead at 21-19, Allegheny College raced out of the halftime break scoring 20 of the first 29 points to open the second half, holding off a late Wooster comeback attempt for a 61-53 victory Wednesday evening inside Timken Gymnasium in North Coast Athletic Conference action. The contest between the two schools was the Women's Basketball Coaches' Association Pink Zone™ event.

Trailing by two, Wooster's Taylor Keegan knocked down a three-point field goal on the Scots' opening possession. The two teams traded baskets over the next two minutes, including two lay-ups from Kaitlin Krister, as Allegheny (14-10, 10-5 NCAC) held a one-point advantage at 27-26. Over the next 4:44, the Fighting Scots (8-16, 6-9 NCAC) watched as a hot-shooting Gators' squad reeled off 14 of the next 15 points, and took a 13-point lead at 41-28 with 13:58 left.

The visitors maintained the double-digit bulge over the next few minutes, and possessed their largest lead of the game at 49-35 with 7:48 showing on the game clock. However, Wooster wasn't finished yet, cutting the lead to five (51-46) via an 11-2 run that covered nearly five minutes including five points from Kym Wenz. Allegheny pushed the lead back out to nine (57-48) with 51 ticks on the clock, but Wooster mounted one final comeback bid, as Keegan nailed a pair of charity tosses, and Wenz converted an old-fashioned three-point play, but the Gators hit a trio of charity tosses handing the Scots the eight-point defeat.

During the opening 20 minutes, both teams struggled to find an offensive rhythm, as Wooster converted just 29.6 percent (8-of-27) of its attempts, while Allegheny made good on 27.6 percent (8-of-29). In the second half, Allegheny warmed up, shooting almost 61 percent from the floor (14-of-23) and also connected on two of three attempts from long-range, raising their shooting percentage to 42.3 percent (22-of-52) for the contest, while Wooster finished the game shooting a 35.6 percent clip from the floor (21-of-59), and made just 2-of-12 for 16.7 percent from beyond the arc.

The battle of the boards was slightly in favor of Allegheny, hauling in 36 rebounds to the Scots' 35 caroms, as both teams committed just 13 turnovers.

Wenz, who bucketed 19 points and added four rebounds and two steals, led the Scots. Krister was close behind, tossing in 16 markers to go along with a game-high 13 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the winter, while Keegan chipped in with 10 points, tied a career-high with four assists, and added a team-high three steals.

Paving the way for the Gators was Emilie Simone, who poured in 17 points along with pulling down six rebounds, three assists and three steals. Two other players hit double digits for Allegheny. Laura Magnelli tossed in 13 points, while Stephanie Wolf netted 10 points and corralled a team-high 10 boards. Additionally, Jill Gregory and Hilary Collins both chipped in with eight points.

Wooster concludes the regular-season portion of its schedule when it hosts Earlham College (2-21, 1-14 NCAC) Saturday afternoon for a 1 p.m. tip.