BRIDGEWATER, Va. – The Bridgewater College women's basketball team evened its conference record at 3-3 with a 69-62 victory Saturday afternoon over Randolph College in Old Dominion Athletic Conference action.

Bridgewater (8-6 overall) never trailed in the final 25 minutes, but the game was tied several times as the WildCats stayed within striking distance.

Randolph (11-4, 2-4 ODAC) took an early 8-6 lead on two foul shots by Chelsea Taylor, but Bridgewater rattled off nine unanswered points to lead by seven. Two buckets by Jessalyn Monday put the Eagles on top and a layup by Cassidy Burkholder made the score 12-6. Jessi Strom then stroked a 3-pointer for a 15-8 Bridgewater lead with 12:53 left in the half.

The WildCats countered with a 7-0 run to tie the score. Jensen Hoover scored from in close and Abigail Bullins hit a 3-pointer to cut the Eagles lead to two. Alexis Calloway connected on a 12-footer to pull Randolph even at 15-15 with 10:57 remaining

The WildCats led 19-18 after a free throw by Jacqueline Hockman but a layup by Monday and four quick points by Jessica Lam gave Bridgewater a 24-19 edge.

After a free throw by Randolph's Tyler, BC's D'Anna Dawson and the WildCats' Allie Druffel traded buckets, putting the Eagles lead at 26-22 with 2:08 left on the first-half clock. Strom made two foul shots before Randolph countered with a bucket by Brie Holdren, making the score 28-24 with 1:28 left in the half. That turned out to be the last bucket of the half as the Eagles took the four-point lead to the locker room.

Randolph's Hockman and Druffel sandwiched buckets around a Strom 3-pointer to start the second half. Oshene Kelly scored after pulling down an offensive rebound and Strom tallied on a driving layup, giving the Eagles a 35-28 lead.

Buckets by Hoover, Hockman and Calloway made it a one-point game before a layup by Burkholder pushed the Eagles' lead to three, 37-34.

The WildCats pulled even, 39-39, on a 3-pointer by Bullins. Kelly and Hockman traded hoops and then the Eagles went up by three, 44-41, when Lam converted a three-point play.

Holdren answered with a three-point play of her own to knot the score again at 44-44. The score remained tied as two free throws by Burkholder were offset by a driving layup from Bullins. Strom then drained a 3-pointer with 10:06 to play, giving the Eagles the lead for good. After Tyler and Monday each made 1-of-2 from the line, Lam connected on a short jumper, giving Bridgewater a 52-47 lead at the 8:15 mark.

The WildCats closed to within two, 52-50, on a layup by Druffel, but Burkholder countered with a driving layup to push the margin to four.

The Cats continued to battle as a jumper by Calloway again cut the deficit to two, but Lam swished a 15-footer for a 56-52 lead.

Randolph had an opportunity to tie the score after a layup by Hockman trimmed the margin back to two. After Monday missed from in close, the WildCats gained possession on Hoover's defensive board. Randolph, however, turned the ball over and Monday scored from the paint, giving the Eagles a 58-54 lead with 5:09 left to play.

Randolph missed two shots on its next trip to the offensive end with the Eagles gaining possession on a Kelly rebound. Monday scored again and the Eagles led 60-54. After a Randolph turnover, Kelly banked in a jumper for a 62-54 Bridgewater advantage with 3:06 remaining.

The Eagles were able to convert enough free throws in the final two minutes to maintain the lead and finish off the 69-62 conference victory.

Strom scored a season-high 18 points – her fifth straight game in double figures – to lead the Eagles scoring attack. Burkholder and Lam each scored 15 and Monday added a season-high 13 points.

Hockman led the WildCats with 11 points and Bullins scored 10.

Randolph held a slim 43-42 edge on the boards with Hoover and Druffel leading the way, each with nine rebounds. Kelly pulled down nine rebounds for the Eagles and Monday added seven.