Tigers Beat Hiram To Move Back Above .500
While the Wittenberg Tigers never trailed against the visiting Hiram Terriers, the outcome of their North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) contest was in doubt until the final stretch, when Wittenberg hit 5-of-8 free throws in the final 34 seconds to pull away for a 71-64 victory.
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — While the Wittenberg Tigers never trailed against the visiting Hiram Terriers, the outcome of their North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) contest was in doubt until the final stretch, when Wittenberg hit 5-of-8 free throws in the final 34 seconds to pull away for a 71-64 victory.
The win was a big one for Wittenberg, especially from a psychological standpoint, as the Tigers climbed above .500 for the both overall (7-6) and in the conference (2-1). Hiram dropped to 8-5 overall and 1-2 in the NCAC.
The game was tied at 2-2 in the early going, but by halftime the Tigers had pulled out to a 38-31 lead. Over the final 20 minutes, the Terriers always stayed within arm's reach of the Tigers but never managed to get any closer than three points. A Calysia Smyers lay-up at the 7:41 mark made it 49-46, but the Tigers scored 10 of the next 13 points to move the lead back out to 10 points.
As a team, the Tigers hit 44 percent from the field and won the rebounding battle 42-37. Both teams committed just 10 turnovers in the game, but the difference was Hiram's shooting percentage of 39 from the field. In addition, Wittenberg hit eight more free throws in the game.
Individually, Wittenberg had three players just miss double-doubles, led by senior Katherine Hueter (Columbus, Ohio/Hilliard Darby) with 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists in 38 outstanding minutes. Junior Sarah Watson (Hudson, Ohio/Hudson) added 14 points, nine rebounds and four assists in 34 minutes, while sophomore Kim Replogle (Houston, Ohio/Houston) chipped in with 13 points and nine rebounds in 15 quality minutes off the bench. Also of note was the performance of freshman Jaclyn Willoughby (Sidney, Ohio/Houston), who turned in four points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Hiram put three players in double figures offensively, led by Jessica Cowan and Kelsey Durichko with 11 points each.