The fifth-ranked UW Oshkosh women’s basketball team collected two wins over the weekend after beating No. 16 ranked UW-Whitewater Feb. 5 77-69 in double-overtime, and the Titans took down UW-River Falls 70-34 Feb. 8 at the Kolf Sports Center.
The win for the Titans over the Warhawks not only completed a season sweep over the Warhawks, but it was also the second game between the two teams that went to overtime after UWO won 59-52 Jan. 15.
Sophomore Sammi Beyer led the Titans (19-1, 8-1 WIAC) in the win with 27 points. Beyer went 11-for-22 on the night with four 3-pointers.
The Titans started the game cold, although both teams were tied 6-6 to start the first quarter. UWW (15-5, 5-4) was able to end the period with a 12-8 lead thanks to 6 points from Warhawks guard Kacie Carollo.
UWW controlled the lead for most of the game but UWO did not let the game get away from them. Every run that the Warhawks had, the Titans would respond as UWW’s lead never grew larger than 13 points.
With 5:25 remaining in the fourth quarter and the Titans down 58-46, UWO did not give up. A layup by Kayce Vaile after rebounding a missed 3-pointer started a 12-0 run for the Titans. Beyer led the run scoring 5 of the 12 points, and the Titans tied the game with a layup from Mallory Hoitink. The game went into overtime after UWW missed an open jumper at the buzzer.
UWO started the first overtime with a 63-58 lead behind a 3-pointer from Beyer. However, just like the Titans, UWW didn’t fade out. The Warhawks were able to tie it back up at 65-65 to send it to a second overtime.
In the second overtime, the Titans closed it out. UWO jumped out to a 71-69 lead behind shots from Beyer and Hoitink. The Titans pulled out to a 77-69 lead behind Vaile and Kate Huml going 6-6 on their free throws in the period as UWO closed out the win over the Warhawks.
UWO took the court at Kolf Sports Center for Senior Day Feb 8.in a rematch against UWRF, the only team to beat Oshkosh this season after the Falcons won 64-59 Jan. 25 at home.
Graduate transfer Alex Rondorf led the Titans in the win, scoring 15 points with all five of her baskets coming from beyond the 3-point line.
UWRF opened the game with a 2-0 lead behind a layup by Falcon guard Zoey Buchan. The Titans immediately took the lead right after at 3-2 with a three from Rondorf.
For the immediate 3:14, neither team could score until Avery Poole ended the drought for both teams with a layup to extend the Titans lead at 5-2. The basket helped the Titans go on a run to go up 10-2. The Titans blew it open to a lead as large as 23-9, until a run to end the half by UWRF cut the deficit down to 25-19.
In the 2nd half, the Titans jumped on the Falcons in the 3rd quarter. UWO started the quarter on a 12-2 run to extend the lead to 37-21. UWO never had its lead be smaller than double-digits as they cruised to the 70-34 win. The Titans held the Falcons to their lowest total points scored in a game since January 2023.
The Titans will hit the road this week for games at UW-Stevens Point on Feb. 12 and UW-La Crosse on Feb. 15. Tip-off at UWSP will take place at 7 p.m. and the matchup at UWL will tip-off at 3 p.m. You can catch the results of the game against the Pointers on the UWO athletics website at uwoshkoshtitans.com.
