Titans' NCAA Championship Journey Ends In Sweet Sixteen

BRUNSWICK, Maine- The UW-Oshkosh women's basketball team was defeated by Smith College (Mass.) 61-59 in the third round of the NCAA Division III Championship on Friday (Mar. 8) at Morrell Gymnasium on the campus of Bowdoin College (Maine).

Kate Huml (So. • Janesville) led the Titans with 17 points and four rebounds off the bench. She shot seven-of-14 from the field, including three-of-five from three. Mallory Hoitink (Fr. • Hartford) followed with 14 points and Kayce Vaile (Sr. • Greendale) with 12 points and five rebounds. Bridget Froehlke (So. • Wrightstown) also registered four rebounds and five assists with Kennedy Osterman (Sr. • Pewaukee) collecting eight points, three rebounds, and two assists. 

Oshkosh (24-6) shot 37.3 percent (22-of-59) from the field, 44 percent (11-of-25) from three, and 100 percent (four-of-four) from the line. The Titans also led Smith (28-3) in bench points (32-8), points off turnovers (12-5), and assists (12-9).  

The Titans grabbed an early lead in the first quarter with a layup from Vaile and Smith responded with a three-pointer to take the lead before a five-point spurt gave the Pioneers an 8-2 lead. Two three-pointers from Vaile and Huml tied the game up at 8-8 before the Titans secured the lead with a jump ball from Froehlke and another three-pointer from Huml. The quarter ended with a layup from the Pioneers. 

The second quarter started off scoreless until 7:50 where Smith went on an 11-0 run to gain a 21-13 lead over the Titans. The teams traded points, but the Titans came back with two jump shots from Huml and a three-pointer from Vaile. Another three-pointer from Hoitink brought Oshkosh within three points. Smith secured two pairs of free throws before the Titans went into halftime with a layup and three-pointer, both from Hoitink, for a score of 30-28. 

Vaile opened the third quarter with a layup to tie the game. The Pioneers responded with a layup of their own before Avery Poole (So. • Cottage Grove) scored a three-pointer for a Titan lead. Smith came back with a three-pointer and layup to grab a four point lead. Hoitink scored a pair of free throws to shorten the score gap to two before Osterman scored a three-pointer for the Titan to have a one point lead. The teams traded points and the lead until Smith was able to secure the lead with a layup. The quarter ended with two free throws from the Pioneers for a 45-40 lead.   

Hoitink scored the first points of the final quarter on a layup. The Pioneers went 6-0 before the Titans responded with three-pointers from Hoitink, Osterman, and Huml for a score of 55-51. Smith registered a layup with 3:46 left in the game. The teams went back and forth with points before Vaile sunk a pair of free throws with under a minute to go. Huml scored a jump shot to tied the game with 22 seconds left before Smith regained the lead off a layup with seven seconds left in the game. Froehlke received the inbound pass after a timeout and made a quick attempt, but could not connect and the Pioneers grabbed the rebound to run out the clock.

The Titans reached the Sweet Sixteen for the 11th time in program history and finished with at least 20 wins for the 11th consecutive season. The finished the season with a record of 24-6, the most since 2019, when they went 26-4 and reached the Sweet Sixteen. The Titans scored 66.1 points per game in the 2023-24 season, holding opponents to just 50.6 points per contest. Oshkosh shot 42.0 percent from the field, 34.4 percent from three, and 78.2 percent from the line, adding 33.8 rebounds, 12.5 assists, 9.5 steals, and forcing 12.3 turnovers. The WIAC regular season champions held 13 opponents to under 50 points across the season. 

Written by Emily Buffington, UW-Oshkosh Sports Information