Women's Basketball downed in overtime by Grove City, 82-79

Steve Janik, Assistant Sports Information Director

BETHANY, W. Va. (Feb. 18) - The Bethany College women's basketball team was defeated in overtime by Grove City 82-79 on Senior Day in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup on Saturday. 

With the loss, Bethany ends the regular season with a record of 12-13 overall, 10-8 in the PAC, while Grove City finishes 14-11 overall and 10-8 in the PAC. The Bison will be the No. 6 seed in the upcoming PAC Championship Tournament and will host Chatham on Monday night at 7 p.m. 

Senior guard Hayley Holenka (Shadyside, Ohio/Shadyside) led the way with 24 points, shooting 5-for-10 from three point range. Junior forward Kelsea Daugherty (Newport, Ohio/Frontier) finished with 20 points and 16 boards (nine offensive), while sophomore guard Sammie Weiss (Avella, Pa./McGuffey) also added a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Junior forward Kelsi Settle (Sebring, Ohio/Sebring) also scored in double figures with 11 points and added six assists in the loss.

The Wolverines held a 56-54 lead heading into the fourth quarter of play.  Grove City led 61-59 until the 7:01 mark when Holenka hit a three to give the Bison their first lead since the second quarter. The Wolverines had a quick answer from Lexie Arkwright, who hit a three of her own to retake the lead at 64-62.

Weiss converted two foul shots to give Bethany the 72-71 lead at the 2:06 mark. After another free throw from Bethany, they maintained the two-point advantage. With 47 seconds left in regulation, Grove City hit a basket to tie it again, this time at 73. In the final 20 seconds, team traded a fouls shot apiece to make it 74 all with just five seconds left. The ball was in Bethany's possession but they were unable to hit a last second basket for the win.

Grove City went on an 8-1 run over the first four minutes of overtime. Bethany hit a three pointer late with five seconds remaining to pull within three, but Grove City ran the clock out to preserve the win.

Arkwright finished the contest with 35 points to lead the Wolverines.

The first quarter saw a lot of back-and-forth scoring with the two teams trading baskets and the lead constantly. Both teams held a four point lead at one point in the opening quarter with Grove City taking the 19-18 lead into the second.

The second quarter was almost identical to the first with the lead changing twice. Daugherty hit a layup at the 7:29 mark of the second to give Bethany the 25-23 lead before Gove City retook and extended their lead to five at 30-25. Bethany would come back to tie at 30 but GCC would take the 32-30 lead into the break.

Prior to the game, Holenka was honored for her contributions to the Bison women's basketball program.

Next up, Bethany will host No. 7 seed Chatham on Monday at 7 p.m. in the opening round of the PAC Championship Tournament.