Overtime Victory for WPU Women
SALEM, Ore. - Deepika Kapil scored 19 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to push Warner Pacific to a 81-76 overtime win over Willamette University on Saturday evening.
After suffering a lopsided exhibition loss at Portland State the night before, coach
Matt Gregg was apprehensive about his team's psyche. The concern was unfounded as the Knights kept their focus despite surrendering a game tying three-pointer at the end of regulation, and outscored the host Bearcats 13-8 in the extra period.
The first quarter was high-scoring and close. There were five ties and seven lead changes during the quarter, which ended with Willamette holding a 22-20 edge. Both teams shot 50% during the quarter, as Willamette made 9 of 18 shots, including 4 of 9 on 3-pointers. The Knights were 6 of 12 from the field and 1 for 1 on 3-pointers. Warner Pacific went 9 for 10 at the line, while Willamette did not take a free throw during the first 10 minutes.
The Knights took a 40-39 lead into the break after Gabriella Bruno sank the second of two free throws with 11 seconds left. There were five ties and four lead changes in the second quarter.
The third quarter belonged to the Bearcats, as they outscored Warner Pacific 20-11 to grab a 59-51 lead. The score was tied at 47-47 midway through the quarter, but Willamette pulled ahead with a 12-4 run.
Warner Pacific tallied the first six points of the fourth quarter to pull within 59-57 on a layup by Kendyl Cone with 6:13 left. After a basket by WU the Knights used a 5-0 run, ending with a 3-pointer by Kaitlyn Rossback, to claim a 62-61 lead with 3:22 remaining in regulation. Another 3-pointer by Rossback gave WPU a 65-63 edge with 54 seconds left.
WPU led 68-65 after Kapil sank the second of two free throws with about seven seconds left. The Bearcats called a timeout and advanced the ball to the offensive half of court. After Willamette sent the ball in-bounds, Drew Farmer found Madison Ballard open in the right corner who swished her 3-point effort with 1.1 seconds to go.
Kapil scored six of her 19 points in overtime, all from the free throw line. Payton Whitmore played all five minutes of overtime and connected on both of her shot attempts.
For the game, Willamette shot 43.1% from the field (28 of 65), including 35.3% from 3-point range (12 of 34). The Bearcats were 8 of 12 at the free throw line. Warner Pacific connected on 36.7% of its shots (22 of 60) and hit 3 of 7 three-pointers. The Knights held a large advantage in free throws, as they hit 34 of 46 shots (73.9%) from the line.
Story in part courtesy of Willamette Sports Information