In a game that saw 13 tied scores, 19 lead changes, and took two overtimes before a winner was decided, the Lady Oaks survived a difficult test against the Red Lions of Lincoln Christian University, out of Lincoln, Illinois.
After gaining a slim 34-33 halftime lead, the Lady Oaks found themselves up three, at 53-40 heading into the fourth period of play. However, with the score even at 70 each, Maddie Ubelhor drained two free throws to give OCU a two point advantage with just under two minutes remaining in regulation. Neither team scored again until, with 27 seconds on the clock, Abigail Crockett sank a pair of foul shots to lock up the score at 72-72.
An OCU turnover gave the Red Lions a chance to win at the end of regulation, but the Lady Oak defense stood strong, as LCU's Kenzie Schlipf's three point attempt fell short at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime.
The OCU seniors, Maddie Ubelhor and Aricka Prentice, scored the first ten points in extra time, giving the Oaks an 82-72 lead with 2:37 left to play. But the Lions responded with a 12-2 run, capped off with a three point basket by Breeanna Brackney, with 20 seconds left on the clock.
As the time ran down, the Oaks turned the ball over, and LCU took the ball down the floor, but time expired before they could attempt a game-winning attempt, sending the game into a second extra period of play.
In the second overtime, the Red Lions scored the first eight points, taking a 92-84 advantage with just under three minutes remaining. The Oaks scored the next five to bring the game within three, but LCU pushed the lead back to six, at 96-90, with less than a minute on the clock.
Julyen Condra grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on a put back, and, after a 1-2 trip to the line for LCU's Becca Adams, Shannon Pittman made a three-pointer to bring the lead back down to two, at 97-95, with 30 seconds to play.
LCU's Mikayla Greene made 1-2 free throws, and Aricka Prentice nailed a three-point basket to even the game at 98 per team, with 18 seconds left. After a quick foul, Greene missed the first of her two free throws, but made the second to return the lead to the Lions. The Oaks brought the ball down the court, and Prentice took a pass from Kiare Young at the top of the key, set and fired from deep, draining the winning shot, and giving the Oaks a 101-99 victory.
Prentice led six OCU players in double figures in the scoring column, posting 19 points, on 7-13 shooting, including 3-4 from beyond the arc, and a perfect 2-2 from the foul line. Kiare Young added 17, followed by Emma Lander and Maddie Ubelhor, who each scored 14. Shannon Pittman came up with a dozen counters, followed by 11 from Julyen Condra. Reanne Kietlinski added a team best 11 rebounds, while scoring three.
Breeanna Brackney posed a game high 21 bounds for the Red Lions, shooting 8-17 from the field, including 1-4 from beyond the arc, to go with 4-6 from the charity stripe. Kenzie Schlipf came off the bench to net 20 counters, including 4-8 from three point range, while Shayla McCormick added 15 points to go with a game high 14 rebounds. Lucy Waid also had a double-double in the loss, scoring 14 and hauling in 13 missed shots, while Abigail Crockett chipped in with 14 counters.
As a team, OCU shot 35-87 (40.2%) from the field, including 8-21 (38.1%) from beyond the arc. The Red Lions connected on 34-82 (41.5%) of their shot attempts, going 6-18 (33.3%) from long range. The Oaks made 23-31 (74.2%) from the foul line, compared to LCU's 25-46 (54.3%).
The Lady Oaks were outrebounded in the contest 63-50, including a deficit of 21-15 on the offensive glass. OCU handed out 25 assists, compared to 18 for the visiting Lions, while winning the turnover battle 30-27.
OCU will return to action on Saturday, January 26, when they host Simmons College of Kentucky, in the Johnson Center. The Lady Oaks will tip off at 1:00, followed by the second half of the double-header, with the men tipping at 3:00.
