Wooster Pulls Out Thrilling 71-65 Win Over Witt

WOOSTER, Ohio – Jessica Wingen scored 15 of her team-high 21 points in the second half to help The College of Wooster erase a nine-point deficit and upend its archrival Wittenberg University 71-65 on Saturday afternoon in a highly-competitive North Coast Athletic Conference match-up at Timken Gymnasium.

The back-and-forth affair featured 13 lead changes and 12 ties, including at 61-61, when Wittenberg's (11-12, 7-7 NCAC) Enri Small made the first of a pair of free throws with 1:59 remaining in regulation. After Small missed the second free throw, the ball went out of bounds off a Wooster (9-14, 4-10 NCAC) player, which gave the Tigers possession once again under the basket.

Wittenberg missed its next shot, but got the offensive rebound, only to have its put-back attempt blocked by Wingen. The Scots took off in transition, and Suvi Puripattarapan slashed to the basket and earned a trip to the foul line, where she connected on both to give the Scots back the lead (63-61).

On Wittenberg's next possession, Wingen blocked another shot and corralled the rebound, and moments later, the Tigers' bench picked up a technical foul, which allowed Wooster to capitalize, as Karley Walker swished two in a row to make it 65-61 with 0:45 to go.

The Scots sealed the outcome at the free throw line, as Puripattarapan went 2-for-2 and Wingen was 4-for-4 from the stripe in the game's closing moments. Overall, the Scots were perfect on their final 12 free throws of the game, and made 29-of-36 (80.6 percent) in all – which is tied for the third-most makes in program history.

Wooster trailed by as much as nine in the second half (41-32), but the Scots chipped away with a steady 15-8 scoring run that was capped off with an off-balance jump shot from Lauren Hancher which cut the deficit to two (49-47) and set up the game's exciting conclusion.

The lead changed 10 times in the first half. The Scots went into the break with slight momentum, though, as Nisa Usman sunk a basket in the paint that tied the game 32-32 at halftime.

Wingen, who was honored before the game as part of "Senior Day," was saddled with foul trouble in the first half, but bounced back in a big way down the stretch to finish with 21 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocked shots.

The Scots also got a career-high 17 points from Hancher, while Walker and Sydney Grier chipped in eight apiece, and Puripattarapan added seven. It was Wooster's first win over Wittenberg since the 2009-10 season.

Wooster took a big step in its quest for a spot in the NCAC Tournament, and will look to win its third in a row when it visits Allegheny College (13-10, 8-6 NCAC) on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.