Wooster Falls to Albion in Final Game of the Nan Nichols Classic

WOOSTER, Ohio - The College of Wooster women's basketball team battled back from a slow start offensively and fought to pare down the deficit to single-digits, but a cold shooting stretch from Fighting Scots eventually gave way for Albion College, as the Britons defeated the Wooster 84-51 to close out the 21st Annual Nan Nichols Classic.

Albion (3-0) was led by All-Tournament selection and tournament Most Valuable Player Oreyana Curry, who finished with 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting, while going 7-of-9 from the free throw line. Curry tallied a game-high 19 points along with five steals and five assists against Capital University (2-1) on Saturday.

Against Wooster (1-2), the Britons took a 19-8 advantage after the opening 10 minutes thanks to a 12-2 run to open the game. The Scots, however, responded to start the second period as sophomore Anna Gibbs penetrated the lane and finished to spark a 6-0 mini run as th Scots eventually brought it back to within six points at the 7:27 mark after first-year Cat Fiorito sank a 3-pointer on the transition after a steal from sophomore Christina Vukovich.

Vukovich, who posted seven rebounds and eight points in Saturday's match-up against Berea College (2-1), followed up yesterday's performance with a solid all-around effort on Sunday,  as the sophomore recorded two steals and one block in addition to five points and five boards to earn All-Tournament honors. On top of that, the sophomore forward went a perfect 3-for-3 from the free throw line, including the topper of an and-one conversion after going up strong in the paint to start the second half and bring the Scots within eight points at the 9:18 mark.

Despite the slow start, Wooster remained within striking distance early into the second half after a made jumper at the 8:20 mark from senior Rachel Collins, who went 4-for-4 from the line and was limited to just six points on the day. However, the Britons capitalized on a Wooster cold stretch during the latter half of the period and broke out an 11-0 run to ultimately take a 56-39 lead heading into the fourth.

The Britons managed to keep up the defensive pressure and pull away in the final stanza, as Albion outscored Wooster 28-12 in the final 10 minutes of play.

First-year Aubri McKoy led the Scots with nine points while matching Vukovich's five rebounds, with three coming on the offensive end, while Fiorito followed closely behind with seven points. Overall, 10 different Scots made the scoring book on the day.

Of note, Albion remains as the only undefeated team after the conclusion of the Classic with Capital defeating Berea by a final score of 66-48 in Sunday's first game. All four teams entered the weekend with a 1-0 record.

In addition to Curry and Vukovich, Albion's Emily Zgoda (25 points, two rebounds, one block), Berea's Bri Lanham (35 points, 10 rebounds, five steals), and Capital's Erin Risner (26 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists) each earned all-tournament honors. In Saturday's match against Wooster, Lanham led all scorers with 27 points, tying for seventh-most points scored by an individual in a single game throughout the 21-year history of the Nan Nichols Classic.

Wooster returns to action on Tuesday as the Scots get set to host Marietta College (2-1) at 6 p.m.