CALDWELL, N.J. - Wilmington University overcame two late deficits to defeat the Caldwell College women's basketball team, 90-82 in double overtime in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference battle Saturday afternoon at the George R. Newman Center. The loss drops the Cougars to 8-3 overall and 2-1 in the CACC, while the Wildcats improve to 8-4, 3-1 CACC.
With the Cougars trailing 62-59 with 2:37 left in the second half, a basket and a conventional three-point play from senior guard Dana Leary (Bridgewater, NJ/Immaculata) put the Cougars ahead 64-62 with 1:14 to go. A lay-up by Wilmington's Kim Parker tied the game at 64-64, but Caldwell answered with a three-pointer from freshman guard Stephanie Cadet (Elmont, NY/Elmont Memorial), pictured, to take a 67-64 lead with 15 seconds remaining. Jamie Gallagher's three-point attempt was off the mark, with the rebound bouncing off a Caldwell player and out of bounds with 0.9 seconds on the clock. Gallagher caught the inbounds pass on the left side and buried the game-tying three-pointer as time expired.
In the first overtime period, Caldwell jumped out to a 75-69 lead before Wilmington scored the next five points to trail 75-74 with just 16 seconds left. Cadet made 1-of-2 at the line with 11 seconds remaining for a 76-74 lead. Again with time winding down, Parker hit a baseline jumper from the right side to tie the game with two seconds left. A three-point attempt from half court by freshman guard Kirsty Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England/Cheshire Acad.) fell just short, sending the game to a second overtime.
The second extra session was all Wilmington. After Caldwell took a 79-78 lead early, the Wildcats reeled off the next 12 points as the Cougars missed 10 straight field goal attempts. Nordia Henry, Sherrelle Holmes and Amelia Simmons each scored four points in the second overtime to clinch a hard-fought victory.
Both teams held nine-point leads in the first half before Caldwell took a 34-29 advantage into halftime. Neither team led by more than four points in the second half, setting up the exciting finish. The Cougars dished out a season-high 23 assists and out-rebounded Wilmington 55-49, while the Wildcats made 46.1 percent from the field compared to 38.0 percent for Caldwell.
Five Cougars scored in double-figures, led by Leary's 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Senior guard Phylicia Holmes (Roselle, NJ/Roselle) recorded 13 points and nine rebounds, Cadet and junior forward Mackenzie Lynch each had 12 and freshman guard Abena George (Elmont, NY/Elmont Memorial) tallied 10 points and seven assists. Lynch also grabbed a season-high 19 rebounds, including six on the offensive glass. Henry led all scorers with 28 points to go with 13 rebounds, while Simmons finished with 19 points and 15 boards, and Parker had 18 points and six assists.
Next up for Caldwell is another home CACC contest as the Cougars host the University of the Sciences on Tuesday, Jan. 8. The game is set to start at 6:00 p.m. in the Newman Center.
