23rd-Ranked Falcons Hold Off Titans' Late Rally

Maranda Dohrn's free throw with 13 seconds left was just enough to lead UW-River Falls to a 57-56 win over the UW-Oshkosh women's basketball team on Saturday (Dec. 12) in Kolf Sports Center.

UW-Oshkosh (1-6/0-3 WIAC) was down 50-35 before staging a 14-2 scoring run to pull within three points (52-49) with 44 seconds remaining. UW-River Falls (8-0/4-0 WIAC) then extended its lead to seven points (56-49) on four foul shots from Kelli Hilt.

A three-point basket from Michelle Boeder (Jr. • Oshkosh) cut UW-Oshkosh's deficit to four points (56-52) with 18 seconds left. Following Dohrn's free throw, the Titans' Laura Ebbens (Jr. • Appleton) drained two free throws to make it a three-point margin (57-54) with eight seconds remaining.

UW-Oshkosh's Shelby Churchill (Jr. • Sheboygan) forced UW-River Falls into a turnover with four seconds left and the steal led to a lay-up by Megan Wenig (Fr. • Oshkosh) at the buzzer.

UW-Oshkosh took a 4-0 lead on lay-ups by Heidi Baerenwald (So. • Appleton) and Ebbens. UW-River Falls then gained a 5-4 lead on Lauren Pellowski's basket in the paint with 14:12 remaining in the half.

The teams traded hoops over the next four minutes and found themselves tied at 12 with 9:43 remaining in the period. With a 15-14 lead, UW-River Falls scored 11 of the next 17 points to take a 26-20 lead to intermission.

UW-Oshkosh pulled to within 28-24 early in the second half on Dannielle Bauer's (Jr. • Dell Rapids, S.D.) jump shot from the lane. The Falcons came back with a 7-2 scoring run to take a 35-26 lead with 13:08 to play.

A jump shot from Boeder cut the Titans' deficit to 35-30 with 11:54 remaining in the contest. But, eight straight points by UW-River Falls, including three-point baskets from Katie Theisen and Tess Lardie, extended the Falcons' lead to 43-30 with 9:15 left.

UW-Oshkosh sliced its deficit to 45-35, but UW-River Falls quickly pushed its advantage to 50-35 with 5:18 remaining.

Boeder scored a season-high 15 points, including three baskets behind the three-point arc, to lead UW-Oshkosh. The Titans also received 12 points Ebbens and six from both Baerenwald and Wenig. Churchill contributed four points, 10 rebounds and three steals.

UW-River Falls, which entered the contest ranked 23rd in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, was paced by the 10 points and five assists of Tiffany Gregorich. The Falcons also received nine points from Hilt, eight points and 10 rebounds from Dohrn and four points, 10 rebounds and three assists from Alise Holst.

UW-Oshkosh posted shooting marks of 33.9 percent (19-56) from the field and 65.2 percent (15-23) from the free-throw line. The Titans, who committed 15 turnovers, shot 25 percent (3-12) behind the three-point arc.

UW-River Falls shot 38.9 percent (21-54) from the field, including 31.8 percent (7-22) behind the three-point line. The Falcons, who committed 20 turnovers, made eight of their 14 free throws (57.1 percent).

UW-Oshkosh is off until it plays Bethany Lutheran College on Saturday (Dec. 19) in Mankato, Minn.