TIFFIN, OH – Senior Brianna Peters (Alexandria, KY/Campbell County) hit two free throws with two seconds remaining to lift Wilmington to the 60-59 victory over Heidelberg Saturday in Ohio Athletic Conference action.

After missing a layup, Peters boarded her own miss and was fouled. Both teams used timeouts following the free throws. Heidelberg's Kathleen Phillips, the league's leading scorer, missed a three-pointer as time expired.

"It was a play especially designed to get it to (Peters) and we did just that," said Scheve. "We kept things as simple as possible."

Wilmington has responded from its two-game losing streak to win two close OAC meetings to improve to 8-4 overall, and 4-1 in the OAC. They have won seven of the last nine games. The Lady Quakers won't return to the hardwood until 3 p.m. January 5, when WC hosts John Carroll.

With senior LeAnn Topp (New Bremen, OH/New Bremen) on the bench dealing with undisclosed injury, Wilmington struggled. Heidelberg was in the midst of a 22-5 run that spanned the end of the first half and second half. At the conclusion of the spurt, the Student Princes led by eight points with 12:15.

"I thought when LeAnn came back in the game it gave us a spark, just her presence," said Scheve. "Defensively, she helped us. She had fresh legs, and the energy she brought got us going."

Soon after Heidelberg claimed its largest lead of the second half, Wilmington made its push to get back into the game. The Lady Quakers had a stretch in which they scored 10 of 12 points during a pivotal 18-6 run that gave WC a five-point advantage with 3:31 remaining.

But not willing to bow down on their home court, the Student Princes got a three-point play and a three-pointer on back-to-back possessions to take the one-point lead. After Peters gave WC the lead on two free throws with 1:39, Heidelberg reclaimed the lead 20 seconds later.

After both teams had empty possessions, Wilmington went to Peters with the game on the line and the senior forward came through.

"It was just two well-matched teams," said Scheve. "Neither team shot well, but that could be attributed to the defense. It was a very physical game; a good college basketball game."

Heidelberg jumped out quickly on WC, scoring the first seven points of the game, but Wilmington responded with a 12-0 run of its own. The Lady Quakers built a nine-point lead in the first 20 minutes, but HC scored the final five points of the first half that morphed into the aforementioned 22-5 run.

Peters reached double figures for the sixth time this year with a team-high 15 points and seven rebounds. Topp added 13 points and seven boards, while senior Shelby Kies (Maineville, OH/Kings) scored a season-high 10 points.

Senior Bria Eslick (Cleveland Heights, OH/Lutheran East) added eight points and four rebounds off the bench.

"Our bench has been important," said Scheve. "I never really talk about starters, but more about our rotation. Shelby and Bria have us a spark off the bench."