After her performance Saturday, senior Courtney Tucker may need to apply for a job in the Department of Defense. This game could be the highlight of her interview.
Tucker (Cincinnati, OH/Sycamore) was spectacular on both ends of the court, but when the Wilmington College women's basketball team needed a play most, the senior simply found a way.
Heidelberg, already leading by three with a shade over a minute remaining, pulled down an offensive rebound from a missed free throw, and was destined to tick away precious seconds off the game clock. But, Tucker stepped in front of a pass attempt on the wing and raced down the court when a momentum grabbing lay-up.
Her ball pressure forced another turnover on the ensuing possession. Sophomore Brittaney Jefferson (Dayton, OH/Jefferson) gave Wilmington the lead for good with 25 seconds remaining, and the Fightin' Quakers secured the hard fought 51-48 Ohio Athletic Conference win at Fred Raizk Arena in Hermann Court.
Not only did Tucker make one of the key defensive stops, her defense on Heidelberg's leading scorer was like a pitbull on a raw steak. She held Theresa Jackson scoreless on just four shots and forced her into three turnovers in 18 minutes. When Jackson wasn't on the court, she hounded Paige Ricketts – who didn't score a single field goal when guarded by Tucker.
However, Tucker isn't a one-way basketball player. She recorded her third double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds – nine coming on the defensive end – and two steals.
It didn't appear as if any late game heroics would be needed as Wilmington scored the first 12 points of the game.
"That was the kind of start you always hope you get off to, and we needed it," said Wilmington head coach Jerry Scheve.
"Heidelberg is a good team, they just started playing and made some baskets, and we didn't," Scheve continued. "It was just a run that just happened to start the game. I don't think anything really changed; runs just happen."
The Student Princes continued to crawl back into the contest, and following a 12-2, they had they game tied with 2:23 seconds remaining. However, junior Alexandria Kingsbery (Lima, OH/Central Catholic) drilled a three-pointer from the top of the key to push WC to a three-point halftime lead.
Every time HU pulled even in the second half, Wilmington had an answer. First, post players Kirsten Glick (Arcadia, OH/Arcadia) and sophomore Mary Moyer (Martinsville, OH/Clinton-Massie) dropped in back-to-back layups early in the half, which helped WC increase its lead back to seven.
Then, freshman Lexi Weber (Clyde, OH/Clyde) found the perfect time for her first career basket – knocking down a three-pointer as Heidelberg tied the game with 11:45.
"We led this game for 36 minutes, and they never could catch us," said Scheve. "I felt as long as we could hold them off, we would be in pretty good shape. And then they caught us, and went up five points. We knew we were going to find out what we were made of. We showed some resilience and bounced back. We did a great job on the defensive boards all night. I will have to look to see what happened on those last couple of possessions. Give Heidelberg credit, they knew what they needed to do, and went and got the ball."
A three-pointer from Jackie Abrecht gave Heidelberg its first lead of the game with 4:02 remaining, and the visitors built a five-point lead.
With Wilmington needing a basket, junior Ashley Andracki (Columbus, OH/Bishop Watterson) brought WC to within two. Coming off the bench for the first time this season, and moving to the wing, Andracki was back in her original position with the game on the line, and came up big.
"We changed Ashley's role tonight, and then put her back in her original role to close the game – and she did a great job of that," said Scheve. "That three was certainly a big shot for us."
From there, Tucker took over on the defensive end and Wilmington escaped with a win.
For the ninth time this season, Moyer reached double figures for the Fightin' Quakers with 11 points. Wilmington is now 8-1 in those contests. She added a team-high three assists, two rebounds and one steal.
Jefferson recorded nine points and a team-high four steals in the victory.
Wilmington (11-8 overall, 6-6 OAC) travels to Ohio Northern 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.
