Lady Quakers erupt in semi-finals in 18-point win

Four players reach double figures in the lopsided win

[BOX SCORE]

Courtney Balser

February 24, 2005

WILMINGTON, Ohio — The Wilmington College Lady Quakers advanced to the OAC Championship game for the fourth time in their five years in the league with a 71-53 victory on Thursday evening in the Semi-Finals of the Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament.

The Lady Quakers held a slim 7-5 lead with 15:44 to play in the first half before the hosts scored the next 19 points of the game, jumping to a 26-5 lead nine minutes later. The first-half lead grew to as many as 27 before the Crusaders cut the deficit to 24 heading into the locker room at halftime.

The Crusaders were never able to get any closer than 18 points the rest of the way, at the final buzzer, as the Green and White cruised to the 71-53 victory.

Freshman Katie Streck (Dayton/Carroll) scored 15 points in the winning effort while Erica Smith (Union/Northmont) and Courtney Balser (Pleasant Plain/Little Miami) each scored 14 and Shawna Thomas (Middletown/Middletown) tied her career high with 10 points. Siobhan Zerilla (Cincinnati/Mercy) pulled down a team-high nine rebounds while adding eight points while Anne Haky (North Olmsted/North Olmsted) dished out seven assists.

Capital was led by Sara Heitkamp, who scored a game-high 28 points on 11-of-22 shooting from the field, as no other Crusader reached double figures. Heitkamp pulled down 11 rebounds for a double-double, while picking off four steals in the loss.

With the win, the Lady Quakers increase their Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament win streak to 14 games, improving to 23-4 on the year while Capital falls to 20-6.

The Lady Quakers will play host to Baldwin-Wallace in the championship game of the OAC Tournament, with a berth into the NCAA Tournament on the line. Tip-off will be at 7:30 p.m., following the completion of the OAC wrestling championships, also hosted by WC.