Wildcats Fall on the Road at Ottawa, 59-50

OTTAWA, Kan. – After taking a lead in the fourth quarter, Baker women's basketball couldn't finish off a weekday road match against Ottawa as the Wildcats fell 59-50 to the Braves on Tuesday evening in Ottawa, Kan. in the final non-conference game for BU this season.

After being within striking distance for most of the game, the Wildcats used an 11-0 run to claim the lead early in the fourth quarter before the Braves went on to retake the lead and spoil the comeback bid for BU.

Baker shot 40 percent for the game (21-for-53) and held the Braves under 30 percent (19-for-68), but the hosts held key advantages in both free throws and 3-pointers. OU went 16-for-18 from the line and hit five triples, while the Wildcats were 7-for-13 on free throws and had just one three in the game.

Jaelyn Two Hearts led the Wildcats in scoring with 14 points, while teammates Leah Van Weelden and Emma Cunningham joined her in double figures with Van Weelden going for 12 points and Cunningham chipping in 11 points and nine rebounds.

Ottawa's first three of the game gave them an early five-point cushion in the first quarter before a jumper by Two Hearts brought BU within one at 9-8. The Braves closed out the opening period by scoring six of the final seven points to take a 19-11 lead after a quarter of play.

In the second quarter, the Wildcats scored six straight points with Two Hearts and Van Weelden connecting on back-to-back buckets before Van Weelden set Cunningham up for a nice finish to cut Baker's deficit to two points.

Another OU three pushed the Braves' lead back out to a seven-point margin, but Cunningham picked up a big put-back to make it 24-21 with just over four minutes until halftime. Cunningham added a late free throw to snap a string of four straight points by the Braves as the Wildcats went into the break trailing, 28-22.

After a bit of a cold stretch was how the first half ended, both teams came out hot to start the third quarter with a combined 13 points scored in the first three minutes that featured Matalina Ochoa knocking down a couple shots for BU.

Trailing 37-30 at the 3:50 mark of the third period, Baker rattled off 11 unanswered points that started with a layup by Cunningham and was highlighted by Van Weelden's buzzer-beater to end the third quarter. A basket by Ochoa capped the run for the Wildcats that saw them taking a 41-37 lead with just under eight minutes left to play.

The Braves swung the momentum back in their favor with a three cutting Baker's lead to one before they went on to reclaim the lead and make it a five-point ballgame on their final triple of the contest with 3:14 remaining. OU would hold down the stretch and come away with the non-conference victory, 59-50.

The double-digit outings for Cunningham and Van Weelden were the third of the year for each of them with Cunningham tallying double figures in the three straight games now for the Wildcats. A senior from Andover, Kan., Cunningham also leads the team in rebounding with 36 boards through the first four games.

Up next, Baker gets into conference action with a matchup against Benedictine on Nov. 15 at 5:30 p.m. inside the Collins Center in Baldwin City, Kan.

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