The Tiffin University women's basketball team fell in overtime to No. 2 Ashland 68-59.
The Eagles improve to 20-1 overall and 15-0 in the GMAC, while the Dragons fall to 9-10 overall and 6-7 in the GMAC.
The Eagles had the shooting advantage from the floor, shooting 25-for-55 (45.5%), while the Dragons shot 20-for-66 (30.3%). Tiffin shot 6-for-15 (40.0%) from beyond the arc, while the Eagles shot 7-for-25 (28.0%). The Dragons outrebounded the Eagles 43 to 36, including 18 offensive rebounds, which allowed them to have 10 second-chance points compared to the Eagles' five second-chance points.
The Dragons were on a mission to start the game, starting off the game on a 7-2 run in the first three minutes. Ashland countered with a 4-1 run to cut the lead to two at 8-6, but a three from Aarion Nichols gave the Dragons a five-point cushion. That lead was short-lived as the Eagles scored four unanswered points to lead 11-10 with 1:25 left but again Nichols came up clutch, making a layup with three seconds left to help the Dragons end the first quarter with a 13-10 lead.
Tiffin again had a strong start to quarter number two, jumping out to a 20-12 lead in the first two minutes of action. After a scoreless two and a half minutes the Eagles made back-to-back threes to cut the deficit down to two midway through the second quarter. Dana Rose answered the call and scored a three of her own to build up a two-possession lead. The Dragons outscored the Eagles 9-8 in the closing minutes before halftime to lead No. 2 Ashland 28-27 at the half.
After halftime the Dragons went on a 4-0 run to increase their lead to five points in the first two minutes of the game, but the Eagles responded with a 6-2 run to cut the lead down to one at 34-33 with 6:32 left in the third quarter. A minute later Ashland went on an 8-0 run to take their first lead of the game at 41-34 with 3:44 left in the period. The host held their seven-point lead going into the final frame up 45-38.
In the final frame the Dragons came out and strung together a 6-2 run to cut the deficit down to three with 7:02 left in regulation. However the Eagles responded with a 5-0 run to go up 51-46 with 3:13 left in regulation. The Dragons never gave up and outscored the Eagles in the last three minutes 9-2 to tie the game at 53-53 to force overtime.
The Dragons scored the first two points to start overtime but then went on a two and a half minute scoring drought where the Eagles scored nine unanswered points to lead 62-55 with 1:33 left in the overtime period. The Dragons never gave up but were unable to mount a comeback and lost to No. 2 Ashland 68-59.
Aarion Nichols led the Dragons with 26 points shooting 9-for-25 from the field and 4-for-6 from deep, with 12 rebounds for her seventh double-double this season, two assists, and one steal, while Jada Tate registered 14 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Kirsten Williams recorded nine points shooting 4-for-10 from the field, four rebounds and one block and teammate Dana Rose also had nine points, with four rebounds, four assists, and one steal.