WILMINGTON, Ohio – The Wilmington College women's basketball team finishes the first half of Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play on Wednesday with a trip to Otterbein University. Tip-off from the Rike Center is slated for 7 p.m.
The Teams: Wilmington and Otterbein. The Quakers enter the game 10-5 overall and an even 4-4 conference record after a 66-51 win at John Carroll University on Saturday. The Cardinals are 9-6 and 5-3 in OAC contests having beaten the University of Mount Union 53-45 on Saturday.
The Coaches: Wilmington is under the direction of third-year Head Coach Janel Blankespoor, who is in her fourth season with the program having been interim coach during the 2020-21 season and the program's top assistant the two years prior. The 2007 Otterbein College alumna spent stints at Mount Union and Earlham College before coming to Wilmington. Diana Noles, a 2004 Otterbein alumnus, is in her third season as head coach at her alma mater. She is a member of the Otterbein's Hall of Fame for her time as a player.
The Players: Fifth-year senior Kennedy Lewis leads Wilmington in several statistical categories including points per game (12.7), rebounds per game (6.0), assists per game (3.2) and steals per game (1.6). A trio of Quakers - Jada Pohlen, Marisa Seiler and Zahrya Bailey - score over eight points a game. Pohlen is the team's top three-point shooter at 36.4 percent while Seiler joins Lewis in grabbing over five rebounds a contest. Finally, Bailey is coming off a career-high 20 points in WC's win over Muskingum University last week. Ottterbein has three players - Katie McCrary, Jenna Hoschouer and Kathleen DeCarlo - that score in double figures. McCrary leads the way at 16.6 points per game despite having not played in several games while the later two combine to grab over 12 rebounds a game.
Tale of the Tape: Points per game – Wilmington 61.7, Otterbein 62.7; opponents' points per game – Wilmington 56.9, Otterbein 62.3; field goal percentage – Wilmington 36.1, Otterbein 39.8; three-point percentage – Wilmington 25.5, Otterbein 33.2; free throw percentage – Wilmington 75.6, Otterbein 64.2; rebounding margin – Wilmington +2.1, Otterbein -1.9; assist-to-turnover ratio – Wilmington 0.71, Otterbein 0.80.
Coaching Connection: Blankespoor (Iden) and Noles (Esterkamp) were teammates for a season at Otterbein. That year, the Cardinals were coincidentally the last team to defeat Wilmington before the Quakers won the 2004 national championship.
Recent History: Wilmington is 25-22 against Otterbein since the 1997 season. The Cardinals, however, are currently on a five-game winning streak, Otterbein's longest in the rivalry. More information can be viewed by visiting the link above.
Tickets: Hometown Ticketing will be used for the game. Fans are encouraged to purchase digital tickets prior to game time at the pink above.
Coverage: Live statistics and live video of the game will be available – visit the links above.
Social Media: Wilmington athletics is represented on Facebook (Wilmington College Athletics), Twitter (@DubCQuakers) and Instagram (@DubCQuakers). Follow all the happenings of Wilmington College on social media by using the hashtag "#WeAreDubC".
Up Next: Wilmington begins the second half of conference play by hosting nationally-ranked Baldwin Wallace University on Saturday. Tip-off from Fred Raizk Arena is scheduled for 4 p.m.
