Wildcats’ Comeback Bid Falls Short at (RV) Grand View in First Heart Road Game

DES MOINES, Iowa – In its first conference road game of the 2023-24 season, Baker women's basketball climbed out of an early hole at (RV) Grand View, only to have the Vikings spoil the comeback bid in the fourth quarter and defeat BU, 75-60 on Saturday afternoon in Des Moines, Iowa.

Facing a double-digit deficit after the opening period, the Wildcats posted 36 points across the second and third quarter to make it a three-point ballgame before the Vikings sealed the game in the fourth.

Jaelyn Two Hearts posted her second straight game with 20 or more points, going for 23 points with six rebounds, five assists and three steals as well. Additionally, it was the third 20-point outing this season for the senior from Fort Totten, N.D., who has scored at least 20 points in three of the first six games this year.

Leah Van Weelden joined Two Hearts in double figures with Van Weelden scoring 12 points, while Matalina Ochoa chipped in eight points and five rebounds.

Led by a 6-for-9 line by Two Hearts, the Wildcats were hot from three-point range, shooting nearly 50 percent (10-for-21) for the game. BU also held an advantage on the boards, finishing with a slight 30-27 edge in rebounds. GVU forced 28 turnovers in the game and turned those into 25 points, while the Wildcats defense created 17 turnovers on their end.

It was Baker who opened up the game with a quick lead, using three steals in the first three minutes of the game to go up 7-1 on the first 3-pointer by Two Hearts. The early momentum would come to a sudden halt for BU though as the Vikings controlled the rest of the opening period, going on a 24-4 run to finish the first quarter with a 25-11 lead.

Trailing by 21 points at one point, Baker started to get things going about midway through the second quarter. Sanijah Waller drilled a three to kickstart the Wildcats' comeback and Two Hearts connected on back-to-back triples a little bit later to make it a 12-point ballgame.

A three-point play by Van Weelden brought the Wildcats within single digits and a buzzer-beating three by Waller capped the 21-point quarter for BU to go into halftime trailing, 38-32.

The Vikings came out of the break and pushed their lead back over double digits before Ochoa and Van Weelden scored consecutive buckets to make it a seven-point game. Sophia Barrett snapped a dry spell for both sides as she drained a three to make 43-39 in favor of GVU.

With Ochoa making it a one-score game at the 3:46 mark, Two Hearts scored the final six points of the third quarter for BU, including tying the game for the first time since the opening period. Grand View countered with a buzzer-beating three of its own to take a 50-47 lead into the final quarter.

In the fourth, Two Hearts immediately drew the game even again after nailing another three and Ochoa gave the Wildcats the lead on a breakaway steal. Seeing their first-half advantage be erased by BU, the Vikings swung the momentum back in their favor with a devastating 21-0 run to all of a sudden find themselves leading by double digits again.

With less than two minutes remaining, Van Weelden hit a three and Two Hearts added her final triple in the closing seconds, but the late deficit would be too much to overcome as the Vikings claimed the conference win, 75-60.

Up next, the Wildcats return to the Collins Center for a home conference matchup against Missouri Valley on Tuesday, Nov. 21 at 5:30 p.m. in Baldwin City, Kan.

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