As Wilmington enters the tough portion of their schedule, the Lady Quakers sit one game behind second place and the double bye in the Ohio Athletic Conference that accompanies the standings. Unfortunately, the Lady Quakers went 1-4 against the five teams remaining in the regular season.
The stretch starts 3 p.m. Saturday as WC hosts Baldwin-Wallace in a White Out event. All fans are encouraged to wear white in support of the Lady Quakers.
The Yellow Jackets scored 10 of the first 12 points in handing Wilmington its first OAC loss of the season. Due to self-imposed penalties, BW will not participate in the postseason tournament and Saturday's game is their last opportunity to play a part in who receives a bye.
Sophomore guard Audrey Smolik, who led the team with 15 points in the first meeting, is coming off a career-high 20 points in BW's upset victory over #19 Mount Union. The win snapped the Yellow Jackets' three-game losing streak. Smolik leads the team in minutes, playing 22.3 minutes per game, and is third on the team in scoring with 8.2 points per game.
A duo of guards are leading the Yellow Jackets as junior Jessica Lairson is leading the team with 10.4 points and 6.2 rebounds, while senior Jessica Carpenter is added 8.4 points per game.
Leading scorer Brianna Peters (Alexandria, KY/Campbell County) scored a team-high 19 points with 10 rebounds in the first meeting. The senior forward is averaging 9.5 points and 6.2 rebounds. The Lady Quakers could be without the services of senior LeAnn Topp (New Bremen, OH/New Bremen), who is leading the team with 7.4 rebounds.
If Topp is unavailable, junior Makenzie Wippel (Orient, OH/Westfall) would move into the starting lineup, and freshman Kirsten Glick (Arcadia, OH/Arcadia) would see additional minutes.
Senior Bria Eslick (Cleveland Heights, OH/Lutheran East) is coming off a 19-point game in Wednesday victory. She has played well over the last four games, averaging more than 10 points per contest. Additionally, sophomore Courtney Tucker (Cincinnati, OH/Sycamore) has upped her scoring output in Wilmington's recent winning streak. The duo has also taken the task of guarding the opposing teams top perimeter threat.