By Tim Glon

ADA — Senior Jordan Kimes scores a team-high 12 points as Ohio Northern fell to Capital 66-54 Thursday night in the OAC Tournament semifinals at the ONU Sports Center.

The Polar Bears fall to 20-6, while the Crusaders improve to 17-10 and will play in the finals at Baldwin Wallace on Saturday at 3 pm.

Ohio Northern outrebounded Capital 39-33, but the Crusaders were able to force 23 Polar Bear turnovers.

Freshman Amy Bullimore netted 10 points for ONU and junior Karissa Steffas chipped in eight.

Northern sored the first nine points of the game, then went on an 11-0 run to take what appeared to be a commanding 20-2 lead midway through the first half.

But the Crusaders would respond and pulled within 30-24 by halftime. CU would then score the first seven points of the second half to take a 31-30 lead with 17:07 left in the game.

But back-to-back 3-pointers by senior Kerri Beedy and sophomore Britt Lauck put ONU back on top 38-34 at the 15:24 mark.

With the score tied at 47-all, CU went on an 10-2 run to grab a 57-49 lead with 4:40 left in the game.

Bullimore connected on a pair of free throws to pull ONU back within 59-53 but CU proved to much to handle as they scored seven of the last eight points to win 66-54.

"We turned the ball over too much today and it gave Capital momentum," ONU head coach Michele Durand said. "We struggled offensively the last 30 minutes. I'm very proud of what we accomplished this season. We won 16 games in the OAC this year and won the OAC regular season title. But this loss hurts right now."

Ohio Northern will await the NCAA selection show Monday at 2:30 pm for a chance at an at large bid to the NCAA Tournament.