Pioneers Win Overtime Thriller Against Bears

St. Louis, Mo. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville women's basketball team improved to 6-5 on the season with a 70-66 overtime win over Washington (Mo.) (6-2) on Sunday afternoon inside the Washington University Field House in St. Louis.

Sophomore Brynlee Nelson scored seven of the first nine points for the Pioneers and freshman Ella Mackiewicz connected on a jumper to give UW-Platteville an 11-6 lead four minutes into the first quarter. The Bears scored the next 10 unanswered to take a five-point lead, but a layup by senior Allison Heckert and a three by Nelson tied the score at 16 at the end of the quarter. WashU maintained a slim lead throughout the second quarter, but the score enter halftime tied at 29 after Heckert drained a three with five seconds left in the half.

The Pioneers gained a five-point lead midway through the third quarter behind a seven-point run, including five straight from Mackiewicz. UW-Platteville increased the lead to nine at 51-42 by the end of the third after scoring the final six points of the frame. The Bears opened the fourth quarter on a 13-2 run to take a 55-53 lead with 4:16 remaining. Junior Sarah Mueller tied the game with a layup and later converted a free throw to switch the lead back to the Pioneers with 1:26 on the clock. WashU made a pair of layups in the final minute and the game was tied at 59 at the end of regulation.

Sophomore Macey Banasik knocked down a three early in the overtime period to give the Pioneers a three-point lead, but the Bears tied the game up at 64 just half a minute later. Up one with less than a minute to play, Heckert and Banasik sealed the 70-66 victory for UW-Platteville with a trio of free throws.

Nelson scored a season-high 20 points while shooting 7-of-10 while Mueller and Heckert both added 12 points. The Pioneers were strong on the glass, outrebounding the Bears 45-30 and Banasik posted a team-high eight rebounds. Banasik also dished out a team-high eight assists to go with eight points. The Pioneers shot 40.0 percent (24-of-60) from the field and 23.3 percent (7-of-30) from deep.

Jessica Brooks scored a game-high 23 for WashU, while Sammi Matoush pitched in with 15 points. The Bears shot 39.3 percent (24-of-61) in the game including 20.0 percent (3-of-15) from beyond the arc.

The Pioneers will get a couple weeks off and will return to action on Wednesday, December 28 on the road against Augustana (Ill.) at 7 p.m.

*As with every UW-Platteville win this year, the Platteville A&W will be offering a $3 Pioneer burger the day after the win and the Platteville Taco John's will be offering 10 tacos for $10 the day after each Pioneer win.