GAMBIER, Ohio – Down by six points in the fourth quarter, the Kenyon Ladies basketball team found several long-range shots and overcame the Ohio Wesleyan Battling Bishops en route to a 61-56 victory at Tomsich Arena.
 
It was the eighth straight win for Kenyon who improved to 9-1 and 4-0 in North Coast Athletic Conference play. The team's 9-1 record through 10 games is the second-best start in program history, and only bested by the 2005-06 squad (10-0).
 
Jessica Gerber scored 14 of her game-high 16 points in the second half while also dishing out four assists. Sophomore Paige Matijasich added 11 points while Ifeoma Archimalo contributed 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Additionally, Griffin Tullis, Sharon Hull and Lane Davis all scored at least six points. Tullis also added a team-high nine rebounds and a pair of blocks.  
 
The first quarter was controlled by OWU (0-7, 0-2 NCAC) who raced out to an 11-4 lead by the 3:26 mark. Erin Delaney led the visitors with five points during the stretch which saw Kenyon shoot 4-for-18 (22.2%). By the end of the period, the Battling Bishops led 14-9.
 
A few of minutes into the second, a Claire Sterling jumper brought the score to 22-13. Down by nine, the Ladies began to chip away at the deficit. After Sterling's bucket, Matijasich hit a shot which sparked a 12-3 run for the Ladies. By the end of half, Kenyon had fought back to tie the game at 25.
 
Both teams traded the lead a couple times in the third, but the Ladies outscored Ohio Wesleyan 17-15. Archimalo put Kenyon up 42-38, its biggest lead, before two free throws from Nicole Popovich closed out the third-quarter scoring.
 
In the final period, the Battling Bishops started strong and retook the lead. A 9-3 run was capped off by a Popovich fast-break layup and that moved the score to 49-45. Later, Sterling scored at 5:48 moving the count to 54-48.
 
Once again though, Kenyon rallied. Gerber followed on the next possession with a three-ball after an offensive rebound from Tullis. Two possessions later, Matijasich tied it at 54 with a corner three-pointer. Then, at the 1:41 mark, Hull continued her clutch late-game shooting with a long ball from the right wing. That moved the score to 57-56, Ladies.
 
Ohio Wesleyan had two free throw attempts on its next possession, but misses from Meghann Dunning kept the score at 57-56. Davis added a put-back shot to move Kenyon up 59-56 and Gerber ended the scoring with two free throws.
 
In the final 5:48, the visitors hit just one of its five attempts and turned the ball over three times.
 
Next on the schedule for Kenyon is a home date on December 18 against Mount Vernon Nazarene University at 1 p.m.