Ladies Top Wooster in NCAC Quarterfinal

GAMBIER, Ohio – The College of Wooster women's basketball team concluded the season with a 63-30 loss to Kenyon College on Tuesday night at Tomsich Arena.

Junior Anna Gibbs led the Fighting Scots (6-20) with nine points on 4-for-10 shooting.

The Ladies (21-5) opened on a 6-1 run capped off by two made free throws from junior Lane Davis.

After a banked-in three-pointer from sophomore Akwia Tilton to make it a 6-4 game, Kenyon shot off six straight points before sophomore Cat Fiorito went nothing-but-net from deep as part of a mini 5-0 Wooster run to draw the Scots within three at the 3:00 mark.

The Scots held Kenyon scoreless over the period's final 2:23, marked by an 0-for-2 skid from the field and two forced turnovers, to go down 14-9 after 10 minutes.

After a quick layup from first-year Sarah Rapacz to start the second, the Ladies tallied two buckets to go up 19-11 at the 7:55 mark. The Scots responded with a spin-o-rama layup from Fiorito to draw back within six before Rapacz made her mark on the defensive end with a big overreaching block.

It was all Ladies for the remainder of the half, as Kenyon produced an 11-0 run over the remaining 7:29 despite going just 4-for-13 during the stretch. The offensive production, however, came from the difference on the defensive end for the Ladies, as they limited Wooster to 0-for-10 shooting over the final eight minutes.

On the half, Wooster shot 20.8 percent compared to a 31.3 percent clip from Kenyon. Cold shooting traveled with the Scots at the foul line, too, with Wooster going just 1-for-8 from the charity stripe. Fiorito led the Black & Gold with five points at the break, followed closely by Tilton's four.

In the first 20 minutes, the Ladies corralled 29 boards, including 10 on the offensive end, which led to a 12-2 edge in second-chance points.

In the third, Kenyon's Sharon Hull opened the scoring with her second three-pointer of the game to go up 33-13 at the 8:40 mark.

First-year Maria Janasko stopped the bleeding with a mid-range pick-and-pop. After two consecutive baskets from Kenyon, Gibbs connected on her second jumper of the day via baseline corner shot off the assist from Janasko to get back within 21.

First-year Jena Copley brought the Scots to within 20 with her first bucket of the day at the 5:04 mark in the third. From there, the Ladies marched to a commanding 52-21 advantage after three periods thanks to a 12-2 period-closing.

Despite shooting 38.8 percent with the fourth yet to play, the Ladies limited Wooster to 9-for-35 from the floor, including a 2-for-11 mark from deep while maintaining an 18-8 advantage in points off turnovers.

Wooster's bench, which has been key for the Scots all year, was limited to two points in the opening three periods.

In the fourth, Tilton got things rolling for Wooster with her second made three-pointer of the day off the assist from Fiorito. Both teams exchanged baskets throughout much of the final stanza, with Kenyon outscoring Wooster 11-9 to take home the win and advance to the semifinals.

Janasko finished with a team-high seven rebounds while Fiorito led all Scots with three assists.