From Case Western Reserve University Athletics
Senior wing Brooke Orcutt (Morrison, Colo./Dakota Ridge) posted 19 points, nine rebounds and six assists to lead the Case Western Reserve University women's basketball team to a 79-72 overtime win against the University of Rochester (N.Y.) in the finale of the school's 10th Annual Throwback Weekend at Adelbert Gymnasium.
The Spartans improve to 8-16 overall and 2-11 in the University Athletic Association, while the Yellowjackets fall to 14-10, 6-7 UAA.
Orcutt led four Spartans in double-figures. Senior forward Berit Eppard (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek) posted a career-high 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for her third double-double of the year. Sophomore guard Jessica McCoy (Cranford, N.J./Cranford) matched a season high with 17 points, and freshman forward Kara Hageman (Pennington, N.J./Hopewell Valley Central) added 14 off of the bench.
Alexandra Leslie paced Rochester with game highs of 25 points and 14 rebounds. Ally Zywicki added 20 points.
In a back-and-forth start to the game, the Spartans rode a 9-0 run to a lead of 23-16 as senior point guard Amanda Germer (Malvern, Pa./Great Valley) hit a jumper with 13:07 on the clock. Rochester then rallied with a 10-3 run to tie the score at 26 as Leslie hit a jumper at 7:35, but Spartans scored the next five and eventually went to halftime ahead, 33-31.
In the second, the Spartans scored the first six points to lead by a game-high eight as an Eppard jumper made the score 39-31 at 17:45. Rochester then scored five straight to start an 11-3 run which ended in a Mary Kronewetter layup that tied the score at 42.
Four lead changes followed before Rochester went back on top with a 9-2 spurt that culminated in two Sarah Kaminsky free throws which made the score 62-55 with 4:17 left to play. Refusing to go away, the Spartans used a 9-2 run of their own to tie the score at 64-64 as Orcutt hit a layup with 1:20 remaining in regulation. One possession later, the Yellowjackets moved ahead with a Leslie layup with 42 seconds left. But with Rochester looking to seal the game, the Spartans played tight defense on an inbound to force a turnover. McCoy then got to the line with 5.9 seconds on the clock to hit a pair of game-tying free throws.
In overtime, the key moment came when Eppard drove to the bucket and hit a layup while being fouled for a three-point play that put the Spartans on top 75-71 with 1:09 on the clock.
As part of CWRU's 10th Annual Throwback Weekend, the Spartans wore uniforms commemorating Flora Stone Mather College for Women.