Beavers Soar Past Golden Eagles
December 04, 2015 | Women's Basketball
MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The No. 7/7 Oregon State women's basketball team battled back from a second-half deficit to earn a hard-fought road victory over Marquette by a score of 65-58 Thursday evening in Milwaukee, Wis.
“We've been tested in a unique way in our last three games, and we've passed those tests,” said Oregon State head coach Scott Rueck. “We've gone through a lot of travel, and we were on the road today against a good Marquette team. They had us on our heels for a while, but we responded. We remembered who we are down the stretch of this game and we executed at a high level.”
Senior Ruth Hamblin filled the stat-sheet, going for 17 points, a career-high 17 rebounds and seven blocks. Fellow senior Jamie Weisner notched her fourth 20-point game of the season, finishing with 26 points, 10 rebounds and a pair of blocks. The contest marked the first time since Nov. 22, 2014 that two Beavers (6-0) netted a double-double in the same game (also Hamblin and Weisner).
Junior Sydney Wiese finished with nine points, a career-high 13 rebounds and seven assists, helping Oregon State out-rebound Marquette (2-5) by a margin of 57-40. Freshman Katie McWilliams hit a pair of late 3-pointers to spark OSU to the comeback win. The Salem, Ore. native played 29 minutes in the contest, a new career-high.
The teams battled early on, with Marquette taking an 11-9 lead into the first media timeout. Junior Gabriella Hanson would briefly return the lead to the Beavers with a corner three late in the opening period, but the Golden Eagles took a 15-14 edge into the second frame.
Back-to-back buckets from Weisner and Hamblin returned the advantage to the Beavers three minutes into the second quarter, but the Golden Eagles would make a late run to take a five-point lead into the break.
Marquette would extend the lead to double-figures in the third quarter, but the Beavers made a run midway through the frame, playing lock-down defense to take the lead late in the period. Oregon State held Marquette to three points in the final 6:38 of the third quarter.
The fourth quarter was tight throughout. McWilliams hit a key corner three with four minutes left on the clock to put the Beavers up by five, and Oregon State would convert down the stretch to take the victory by seven points.
“I thought it was doing all the little things that made the difference,” Hamblin said. “It was about getting rebounds and making hustle plays that helped us get back in the game and put it away.”
The Beavers return home on Dec. 12 to take on Idaho at Gill Coliseum.
Tickets for every game this season are available at BeaverTickets.com or by calling 800-GOBEAVS. Thirteen home games remain on this year's schedule, including marquee matchups against Tennessee, Stanford and Arizona State.
