SALEM, Ore. – A 15-foot jumper from just outside the key with time expiring in regulation came up long, thus sending the Corban University Women's Basketball team to an overtime period in a non-conference matchup with NCAA DIII Linfield University earlier this afternoon. Due to foul trouble and the offense growing cold in crucial moments, the Warriors fell 73-66 following the extra period and will head into the Christmas vacation looking for a fresh start to the second half of their season.
"I love the energy and passion the team played with on a quick turnaround from last weekend's games," Corban head coach Bill Pilgeram said following their overtime loss. "It was great having the support of the elementary kids throughout the game."
Coach Pilgeram also shared, "To make that run to get back to the lead in the fourth shows the grit and determination of this team. I feel like we are in a good place as a team and looking forward to getting back into action after the Christmas break."
With a couple hundred screaming elementary school kids in attendance for the program's annual Field Trip game, the Warriors (3-8) were able to hop out to a 17-11 lead to end the first quarter, utilizing the intensity of the crowd to badger the Wildcats (6-4) into making unforced errors and take inopportune shot selections.
Corban was able to enter the halftime break with a 27-20 advantage over Linfield, as their alert zone defense was causing all sorts of issues throughout the opening half and creating transition opportunities, specifically around the three-point arc and from mid-range.
The locker room session was exactly what the Wildcats needed in order to flip the scoreboard on the Warriors, as they emerged with a much more dominant presence around the court and caused a handful of issues for Corban, especially when putting them in foul trouble. An 18-9 third quarter result now put Linfield in the driver's seat and forced the Navy and Gold into a uncomfortable situation on their home court.
With four minutes remaining in regulation, Wildcats' guard Miki Vermeulen splashed a three-pointer to push the Linfield lead to double-digits at 53-43, but the Warriors were far from letting this contest slip away. Over the next three and a half minutes, Corban would outscore Linfield 13-3 and even take a 56-54 lead with less than a minute remaining.
After the Navy and Gold couldn't covert on a pair of free throws, Linfield earned their way to the free throw line with five seconds remaining and also missed both attempts. However, Wildcats' forward Gillyan Landis collected the rebound on the second shot and laid it up and in to tie the contest with just 2.3 seconds remaining. Despite a good look by Warriors' freshman guard Autumn Agnew as time expired, the Wildcats forced overtime and took over from that point on, outscoring Corban 17-10 in overtime to take the non-conference victory.
While the defense and offense both had their shining moments on the court today for Corban, a lowly 28.2% from the field combined with seven missed free throws and a handful of student-athletes in foul trouble are ultimately what cost them the win today, with a handful of great shot selections just not connecting and thus leading to momentum for the road team alongside putting more pressure on their defense to perform.
Warriors' senior guard Kirsten Koehnke came alive for Coach Pilgeram and the program in her best offensive performance of the season and of her Corban career, scoring a game-high and career-high 24 points on 7-for-13 field goals and added a team-high seven boards on the weakside rebound. Fellow senior guard Maddie Godwin was the only other Warrior in double-digit scoring this afternoon, as she added 16 points and an impressive six steals on the defensive end of the floor.
Landis scored a team-high 23 points for the Wildcats with nine boards, while guard Eve Burke added 15 points and matched Landis in rebounds with nine more herself. Despite scoring only three points, Vermeulen hauled in a game-high 13 rebounds out of 53 team boards, providing her team with some huge support in the paint.
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