(WILMINGTON, Ohio) – The Wilmington College women's basketball team lost their Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) opener in heartbreaking fashion Wednesday night on Hermann Court, 66-58, in overtime to the Otterbein University Cardinals.

After trailing 17-1 heading into the second quarter, the Quakers stormed all the way back and tied the game at 53-53 heading into overtime, before the Cardinals pulled away for the win.

As mentioned, the first quarter was all Otterbein as Wilmington didn't make a single shot and trailed 17-1. The score was pushed to 19-1 in the second quarter before freshman Keetyn Hupp made the Quakers first basket of the game with 7:49 to play in the first half. The Quakers then proceeded to hang tough with the Cardinals and outscore them 15-13 in the quarter and give themselves a chance in the second half, as they went into the locker room down 30-16.

The third quarter was all Quakers. They used a 13-6 rally to cut the lead down to seven at 36-29. Leading the charge was Hupp with five points and Cassidy Lovett with four points. Their run would continue as they outscored the Cardinals 21-10 in the quarter and went into the final period down just three at 40-37.

Otterbein looked to have put the game out of reach, taking a 50-39 lead after a 10-2 run to begin the quarter. The Quakers didn't blink though and fought all the way back with a 14-3 flurry to tie the game at 53-53 with seven seconds remaining in the game. Hupp had five points, and Natalie Rupp had four points during this rally.

The final seconds were crazy, as a Wilmington foul sent Otterbein to the free throw line. With Fred Raizk arena at a fever pitch, the Cardinals missed both free throws and Wilmington grabbed the rebound, and the game was going to overtime. Unfortunately for Wilmington, the Cardinals dominated the five-minute overtime period, outscoring the Quakers 13-5 and coming away with the victory.

Notables

• Freshman Stephanie Altstaetter recorded her first collegiate double-double, scoring 10 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. This was her third game this season scoring double-digit points and first game with double-digit rebounds.
• Keetyn Hupp led the team with 15 points, while Zahkyria Walker had 12 and Natalie Rupp had 10.
• This is Hupp's fourth game this season with double-digit points, Walker's third, and Rupp's first game of her collegiate career with double-digit points.
• Walker also had three assists to tie the game-high and had a game-high four steals.
• Both Hupp and Altstaetter tied for a game-high two blocks.
• The Quakers made 20 free throws in the game, their second game this season with 20 or more made free-throws (22 on November 9th at Mount St. Joseph).

What's Up Next

The Quakers continue their OAC homestand Saturday afternoon against the University of Mount Union Purple Raiders in Fred Raizk Arena at 2:00 P.M.