Rachel Huxhold

WOOSTER, Ohio – The College of Wooster used scoring runs of 17-2 and 13-3 to wipe away double-digit deficits in the first and second halves, respectively, but Ohio Wesleyan University withstood the Fighting Scots' rallies to grit out a 72-67 victory Wednesday evening in a North Coast Athletic Conference tilt at Timken Gymnasium.

The fact that the game was still up for grabs during the final minute of regulation was surprising, considering Wooster (6-13, 1-10 NCAC) trailed the Battling Bishops (13-8, 8-4 NCAC) by 14 points in the first half and 11 midway through the second, but the Scots dug themselves out of trouble each time to make for an exciting contest.

Down 24-10 with a little over 10 minutes left in the first half, Wooster went on to score 17 points over the next four minutes, allowing just a pair of free throws during that span, to take a 27-26 lead.

Rachel Huxhold sparked the Scots during that stretch with seven of her career-high 16 points, and Sydney Grier and Karley Walker joined Huxhold in knocking down 3-pointers during the run. Wooster went into the break behind by just two points (39-37).

Much like it did during the first half, Ohio Wesleyan got hot and pulled ahead to start the second stanza, but once again, the Scots managed to work their way back into the game.

With the Bishops ahead by 11 at 54-43, Wooster produced a 13-3 run, which included eight straight points from Lauren Hancher, and 11 Hancher tallies in all, with her lay-up and ensuing free throw at the 6:25 mark pulling the Scots within one (57-56).

The Scots were able to tie the game on two occasions down the stretch, with a pair of Hancher free throws knotting the score at 62-62, and a difficult jumper by Walker with 2:14 to go that made it 66-66.

Wooster generated some solid looks at the basket down the stretch, but went 0-for-4 from the field, while Ohio Wesleyan sunk all six of its shots from the charity stripe to pull away for the win.

Hancher led all scorers with 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting, while Huxhold's 16 points were a personal best, as she topped the 15 she scored in a game against Ohio Wesleyan last season.

Other noteworthy statistics include Walker's 14 points, Grier's nine points on a set of 3-pointers, and Maura Hall's game-high 12 rebounds.

Ohio Wesleyan was extremely balanced, with 13 players contributing points, highlighted by Sarah McQuade's 10.

Next up, Wooster visits Denison University (15-5, 7-4 NCAC) on Saturday at 1 p.m.