Coyotes drop second straight to Ottawa
By: David Toelle, KWU Sports Information

Kaylaen Dittmer gave Kansas Wesleyan its only lead of the first half with a layup following the opening tip, but a 6-0 run by Ottawa put the Braves up 6-2 with 18:57 left as the Braves knocked off the Coyotes 84-68 at Wilson Fieldhouse in Ottawa.

The catalyst of the Ottawa (5-4, 2-0) run was a suffocating full court press that yielded 17 first half turnovers against the Coyotes, turning into 16 points for the Braves through the first 20 minutes.

 The Coyotes got within three at 11-8 on a bucket by Jentri Dixon, and as close as two with 13:34 left on a pair of Madison Askins free throws, but Ottawa responded with a 12-2 run over the next four and a half minutes to take a 27-15 lead.

Wesleyan fought back, going on a 6-0 run to get back within six at 27-21 with 7:02 left in the half, before Ottawa exploded again, using a decisive 19-4 run to take a 46-25 lead with 2:05 left on a three by Jara Vance.

Ascendra Peters cut the Ottawa lead to 18 just before the half to give the Braves a 48-30 lead heading into overtime.

The Coyotes would trail again by 18 at 54-36 with 16:24 left, when Ottawa would again turn on the offensive firepower, going on a 11-4 run to take a 65-40 lead with 13:52 left in the game. Ottawa would take its biggest lead at 26, 76-50, with 7:27 left o a bucket by Tina Wilson, before the Coyotes would cut into the Brave lead.

Wesleyan (3-8, 0-2) would use an 18-8 run to end the game to get close, dropping its second straight KCAC game 84-68.

Sarah Montoya led the Coyotes with 15 points, while Jentri Dixon added 14 and Peters had 12 as Wesleyan shot 26-of-63 from the field for 41.3 percent. Peters led the Coyotes on the boards with eight, while Dittmer added five.

White led the Braves in scoring with 15, while Hallie Lee added 12 and Hallie Boyce had 10 as Ottawa shot 28-of-61 from the field for 45.9 percent, including a 13-of-25, 52 percent effort in the second half. White also led Ottawa on the boards with nine, while Lee had seven as the Braves outrebounded the Coyotes 45-34.

-- KWU SI --