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COLUMBUS – The Capital University women's basketball team pulled out a gritty 57-53 victory over Wilmington in the second round of the Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament at the Capital Center on Tuesday evening.

No. 4 seeded Capital is now set to travel to No. 1 seeded Baldwin Wallace for an OAC Tournament semifinal game on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

"I'm glad we got the win, and I'm happy for the kids," said head coach Dixie Jeffers. "We didn't panic tonight, and we stayed together and made the plays to make things happen to get the win. The kids will go celebrate, and the coaches will get back to work."

The Crusaders (17-8 overall) led by the slimmest of margins before Wilmington took the lead with two minutes left.

Following a made three-point shot by the Quakers, sophomore guard Jenna Erwin (Springfield, Ohio) responded with a three-point shot of her own, before Wilmington tied the game back up at 51 points apiece with 1:31 remaining in the game.

After a defensive stand, sophomore guard Simonne Gage (Cincinnati, Ohio) found classmate in forward Kristen Thompson (Cincinnati, Ohio) inside for a basket to give Capital the lead with 35 seconds left in the final period. Following a missed shot by the Quakers, Gage then connected on both of her free throws.

Wilmington scored with eight seconds remaining but was unable to stop Thompson from sealing the game with a layup with two seconds left on the clock.

In a balanced effort that saw nine players record a field goal, Gage led the Crusaders with 14 points on 5-9 shooting, while senior guard Cookie Geroski (Fostoria, Ohio) matched Gage with a team-high eight rebounds.

Erwin tallied 12 points on the night, including a pair of timely three-point shots.

The Crusaders held Wilmington to 36.1 percent (22-61) shooting from the field, while also forcing 14 turnovers and limiting the Quakers to a 1-12 mark from three-point range.

"Coach kept saying 'play to win', and we got after it on defense," Gage said. "We just dug deep and did what it took to get the win."

In the first half, Capital took a quick 11-2 lead, prompting an early timeout by the Quakers, as the Crusaders made their first four shots of the game.

Spearheaded by tough defense and a strong inside game, Wilmington took the lead on a 19-6 run with 5:24 left in the first half.

A 9-3 run then gave the Crusaders a short lived 26-24 lead before the Quakers tied it with just seconds remaining in the opening half.

A three-point shot by Erwin and a basket by sophomore Nina Napolitano (Akron, Ohio) keyed Capital's late charge.

Just as they had begun the game, the Crusaders got off to a quick start to begin the second half of play, as free throws by junior Shelby Sheets (Fayetteville, Ohio), along with made baskets by Gage and senior Jamie Caton (Hilliard, Ohio), gave Capital a quick 32-28 lead just over two minutes into the final half.

"We just told ourselves that every rebound had to be ours," Erwin said. "(On offense), I got some great looks and my teammates did a great job finding me."

With the win, the Crusaders now prepare for No. 1 seeded Baldwin Wallace, a game which will determine who advances to the OAC Tournament final on Saturday.

Stay up-to-date on athletics.capital.edu for a preview of Thursday night's matchup in Berea, Ohio.