Women's Basketball Rallies for Arizona Victory

Women's Basketball made their way to the southwest to take on Ottawa (AZ) on Tuesday evening in Surprise, Arizona. In the first meeting between the two programs, Doane used a big second half to rally for a 77-63 victory over the Spirit.

The Tigers were able to get off to a strong start, taking an 11-4 lead through five minutes of action. A media timeout at the midway point had an adverse effect on Doane as the Spirit closed the half on a 10-2 run to take a 14-13 lead after 10 minutes of action.

The momentum remained on Ottawa's side as they scored seven straight to open the second quarter to take a 21-13 lead. The Spirit led by eight points with 1:26 to play in the quarter before the Tigers caught fire, in particular Kaylee Klover. The ability to get to the free throw line allowed Doane to trim the deficit to three points, 32-29, at the half.

Libby Trausch knocked down a 3-point basket to begin the scoring for Doane. Following a Spirit jumper, the Tigers countered with a 9-0 run to regain the lead, 41-34. Doane pushed their lead to 12 points in the final minute before Ottawa hit a 3-point basket at the buzzer, leaving the Tigers up 53-44.

Ottawa started the final quarter strong, trimming the Doane lead down to three points, 57-54, with 7:42 to play. Just as quickly as the Spirit had trimmed the lead, the Tigers extended the lead back to 11 points with an 8-0 run. Megan Chambers had six of the points in the run. Doane continued to slowly extend their lead, eventually to 17 points before the Spirit hit a 3-point basket with eight seconds left in the game for the final scoring.

Macy Holtz led all scorers with 22 points. She added team-highs with four assists and two blocked shots. Klover finished with 20 points and game-highs with 13 rebounds and five steals. Chambers posted 15 points and seven rebounds while Maddie Portwine added 13 points. Trausch posted five points, five rebounds, four steals, and three assists.

For the game, Doane was 21-of-48 (44-percent) from the floor and 5-of-13 (39-percent) from behind the 3-point line. The Tigers' held a significant advantage at the free throw line, going 30-of-34 (88-percent). Ottawa was 23-of-57 (40-percent) from the floor and 6-of-11 (55-percent) from behind the arc. The Spirit made 11-of-14 (79-percent) at the free throw line.

Ottawa was led by Angel Addleman with 18 points, five assists, and four steals. Brianna Humphries added 11 points, seven rebounds, three blocked shots, and four steals.

Doane will have a short turnaround as they take on NAIA No. 19 Arizona Christian on Wednesday evening at 6:00 PM CST (5:00 local time).