The Oglethorpe women's basketball team found themselves locked in a tight game with the LeTourneau YellowJackets Monday evening to get their week at the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Classic started at Dorough Field House. The home side outscored the visitors 16-12 in overtime, though, to secure an 89-85 win over and improve to 9-1 on the season.
The Stormy Petrels scored the first two baskets of the extra frame to take a 77-73 lead with just over 4 minutes remaining, but the YellowJackets tied it up at 77-all with 3:20 left, using a 3-pointer and a free throw to accomplish that. The Petrels used a basket from junior guard Taylor Smith, who collected Oglethorpe's first three baskets of overtime and finished with 21 points and nine rebounds, to take a 79-77 lead, then got a pair of free throws from freshman guard Olivia Herrera to give her team an 81-77 edge with 2:15 on the clock. The teams traded made free throws, but a LeTourneau bucket with 30 seconds left made it 82-80. Sophomore guard Nikki Reed, who finished with 16 points and a team-high four assists, made 1 of 2 at the other end, but that left the YellowJackets with the ball and a chance to tie. They missed a couple shots, but picked up offensive rebounds on both of them and converted a layup to cut the lead to a point with 6 seconds on the clock. Herrera made both free throws after quickly getting fouled, but LeTourneau again had a chance, down 85-82 with 5 seconds remaining. However, after the visitors used a timeout and advanced the ball, Herrera came up with a huge steal on the inbound pass, then made both free throws after getting fouled to give her team an 86-82 lead. The YellowJackets sank a 3-pointer very quickly on the other end, cutting the Oglethorpe lead back to a point, and Reed made 1 of 2 with 2 seconds left to make it 87-85. The Petrels picked up another steal on the visitors' last-ditch effort, though, and sank two more free throws to secure the win.
After a poor start in the first half, Oglethorpe found themselves down 42-34 at the break. They came alive during an outstanding third quarter, though, embarking on a 19-5 run over the opening 7 minutes of the period and taking a 53-47 lead. The Petrels outscored the YellowJackets 24-11 over the course of the third quarter and took a 58-53 edge into the final 10 minutes of regulation. LeTourneau tied it 62-62 at the 7:30 mark, but the Petrels pushed their advantage out to as many as 7 points, their largest of the game, and led 69-62 with 3:45 remaining in regulation. The visitors used an 11-4 run, though, to tie the game with 38 seconds left. Oglethorpe junior center Savannah LeGate had an outstanding game, scoring 24 points on 9-of-17 from the field while grabbing 13 rebounds, but she fouled out at that point. Neither team could convert on a final shot and the game went to overtime.
The first quarter did not go according to plan for the Petrels. The YellowJackets jumped all over the home side early, going on an 8-0 run at one point and taking a 24-14 lead at end of the opening period. LeTourneau forced six turnovers over the opening 10 minutes of play. The Petrels stopped the bleeding in the second quarter, never letting LeTourneau extend their lead to more than 12 points, but they weren't able to make many inroads of their own against the pressing YellowJackets until their third-quarter run.
The Petrels used better shooting in the second half and their prowess in the paint to get a leg up on the visitors. They shot 42.6 percent from the field while holding LeTourneau to just 34.9 percent for the game. The Petrels also 29 free throws, outscoring the YellowJackets by 13 points at the line. They outscored their opponent 42-28 in the paint.
Oglethorpe quickly gets back to action on Tuesday, closing out the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Classic against Belhaven at 4 p.m. from Dorough Field House. The Blazers knocked off Centre 78-67 in Monday's first game.