The leading three-point shooter of the night for the Beavers, sophomore Brittany Stegmaier (Garfield/Trinity), started off with the first five Bluffton points. After four freebies from Kim Miller (Delphos/St. John's), senior forward Ginny Buckingham (Bluffton) picked off an Oberlin pass and raced down the court for an easy deuce. At the 13th minute mark, Beth Yoder (Marshallville/Smithville) found an open Kirstie Runion (Cincinnati/Cincinnati Christian) behind the arc to put the Beavers up, 14-9, over the Yeowomen.

 

Oberlin picked up the pace with a 7-3 rally over the next three minutes until Miller nailed a jumper thanks to a dish from senior guard Vicki Auer (Cincinnati/Roger Bacon). With less than nine minutes on the clock, Miller connected with sophomore Rachel Daman (Defiance/Tinora) for two Bluffton points to give the Beavers a slim 19-16 lead over the Yeowomen.

 

With 3:35 left in the first half, Brittany Lewis (Springfield/Shawnee) came up with another steal and went coast-to-coast to tie the game at 29. Yoder sank a triple on the last Beaver possession of the first half as Bluffton took a 36-34 lead into the break.

 

Stegmaier again ignited the Beavers in the second half as she drained her second three-pointer of the night, sparking the 15-0 jag that effectively put the game on ice. After Yeowoman Syrea Thomas came up with the offensive board and stickback, the Beavers responded as Auer went 2-for-2 at the charity stripe and Stegmaier nailed a jumper, putting Bluffton up 58-41.

 

With 4:36 remaining on the clock, Daman completed an old-fashioned three point play to give the Beavers a 20-point lead over the Yeowomen. Bluffton ended the contest going 3-of-4 from the free throw line to seal the 70-50 victory. With the win, the Beavers advanced to the championship game where they will meet Wheaton College.

 

Kim Miller and Brittany Stegmaier finished the game with 19 points each. Miller went 7-of-7 at the charity stripe as well as pulling down seven rebounds, dishing out six assists and picking up a steal. Stegmaier, who established a new career-high with the 19 points, drained three triples in the contest to go along with six boards, two assists and two steals. Ginny Buckingham grabbed 10 caroms and three steals in addition to generating eight points. Brittany Lewis pulled down seven misses, contributed four points and picked up two steals. Kirstie Runion added three points and three assists while getting two steals and four boards.

 

Syrea Thomas led the Yeowomen with 14 points and five rebounds. Teammates Allison Anderson and Kayla Brandt both had 12 points and three boards, while Anderson handed out four assists and picked up two steals. Emily Chu Finkel led Oberlin with 11 rebounds.

 

Bluffton went 24-of-61 (39.3 percent) from the field while Oberlin hit 20-of-55 (36.4 percent). The Beavers were 17-of-21 (81 percent) from the line compared to just 2-of-3 (66.7 percent) for the Yeowomen. Oberlin sank three more treys than the home team (8-5) and committed eight more turnovers (27-19). The Beavers grabbed 42 boards, eight more than their opponents.
 

 

The Bluffton University women's basketball team will face Wheaton College in the championship round of the second annual Tip-Off Tournament in Founders Hall on Saturday, November 21. The contest is slated to tip at 3 p.m. following the consolation game between St. Mary's College and Oberlin.