CINCINNATI, Ohio - The Bluffton University women's basketball team rallied from an eight-point second-half deficit on the way to a stunning 68-66 overtime victory at Mount St. Joseph on a chilly Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. Bluffton improved to 9-8 overall and 3-7 in the Heartland Conference, while the Lions slipped to 11-6 and 6-4 in the HCAC.
An Ella Stivers layup put the host Lions up 43-35 with 4:20 to play in the third quarter before the Beavers went to work. Senior Kayla Prigge knocked down a jumper and Rachel Clark (Lima/Bath) followed with five straight points. A pair of Lacie Fenstermaker (Leipsic/Pandora-Gilboa) freebies capped a quick 9-0 run, putting the visitors up 44-43 with a minute to play in the period. MSJ bounced back with four consecutive counters for a 47-44 lead going to the fourth quarter.
Clark dialed long distance and then added three more the old-fashioned way for a 50-47 Bluffton lead. Madison Brown (Montpelier/North Central) hit from deep and then she split a pair at the line before Clark followed suit for a three-point spread with just 18 seconds left in regulation. A Karlee Mills bomb sent the game to overtime when she hit with seven seconds on the clock.
Four straight Clark counters put Bluffton up 62-60, but the Lions responded with a six-point spurt. Kayla Prigge (Hamler/Patrick Henry) cut the lead in half before Clark picked the home team off and capped it with the equalizer. Following a Mount St. Joseph miss, Prigge drained both of her attempts from the charity stripe for a stunning 68-66 comeback victory!
Clark torched her career high with 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field and 7-of-8 at the line. She also knocked down a pair of triples. Prigge followed with 18 points and seven rebounds. Brown chipped in with 13 markers, eight caroms and three assists. Smith was a force inside, blocking a career-best six shots and ripping down a game-high 10 boards.
Bluffton hit 21-of-60 from the field (35 percent), including 5-of-20 (25 percent) outside the arc. The Beavers were 21-of-34 from the line (61.8 percent), making more free throws than MSJ attempted (9-of-14). Bluffton ripped down nine more rebounds (49-40), but the visitors also turned it over four more times (16-12).
The Beavers will be back in the Sommer Center for a 1 p.m. showdown with Franklin College on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025. The Alumni Game is set to tip at 10 a.m. prior to the double feature with the Grizzlies.
-BEAVERS-