Oakland City, IN - In a rescheduled game from November 9, which would have been OCU's River States Conference season opener, the Oakland City University women's basketball team hosted the Bearcats of Brescia University. After falling behind 31-19 at the end of the first period, the Oaks trailed by as many as 19 points in the second quarter, but fought back to trail 45-35 at the halftime break. The Mighty oaks continued to claw back, seeing a 63-59 deficit with one quarter to play. OCU took their first lead in the fourth quarter and never looked back, winning by the final score of 86-74.
OCU improved to 9-8 on the season, including a 5-3 mark in the River States Conference. The Bearcats dropped to 3-13 overall, with a 2-4 RSC total.
Marissa Austin led all scorers in the game, notching 17 points for the Mighty Oaks, on 5-11 shooting, while going 5-8 from the foul line.
Malia Schmittler posted 16 counters, on 7-8 shots, while hauling in a game high seven rebounds, tied with
Jalaya Dowell.
Taylor Dillard added 10 counters, while Kiare young handed out six assists and nabbed four steals in the victory.
Hallie Fisher scored a team best 14 points for Brescia University, making 4-10 from the field, including 3-9 from three point range, while going 3-4 from the charity stripe. Courtney Peyton added 13 counters, followed by 10 each from Riley Collins and Jacqueline Jackson.
Overall, the Mighty Oaks made 30-62 (48.4%) of their field goal tries, going 10-21 (47.6%) from three point range. The Bearcats connected on 29-62 (46.8%) of their shots, including 7-21 (33.3%) from beyond the arc. OCU made 16-24 (66.7%) from the foul line, while Brescia went 9-16 (56.3%) from the charity stripe.
Both teams grabbed 35 rebounds, with OCU holding a 10-9 edge on the offensive boards. Brescia handed out 18 assists, four more than Oakland City, but the Oaks won the turnover battle 24-21.
The Mighty Oaks will be back in action on Saturday, January 22, when Ohio Christian University visits the Johnson Center for a River States Conference double header. The men's game will tip off at 1:00, followed by the women's contest.
After the games, six newcomers will be inducted into the Oakland City University Athletic Hall of Fame. The 2020 class, consisting of Carl Rex May (1957), Erin Evans Kerns (2005), and Chad Miller (2007), will join the 2021 class of Pete Swanson (Honorary), David Lueking (1965), and Jeff Derlauf (2006), and will be inducted at a banquet in the OCU Student Life Center at 6:00 pm.
