WILMINGTON, Ohio – The Capital University women's basketball team (18-6, 12-5 OAC) traveled to face Wilmington (6-18, 3-14 OAC) on Wednesday night, coming away with a win despite having to fend off a second half comeback from the Quakers, 68-62.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The first quarter was a close one, finishing 14-12 in favor of the Comets. Both teams struggled to score early on, hovering at around 30% with Cap pulling slightly ahead at 35.7%. Samaree Perkins led the offense for CU, scoring nine points including the team's only made three-pointer of the period.

The Purple and White would start to pull away a little in the second quarter, embarking on an 11-0 scoring run made up of five from Bri O'Connor and three apiece from Perkins and Maddi Weiland. Wilmington would inch closer towards the close of the quarter, bringing their deficit down to single-digits before halftime, 32-24.

Despite starting the second half strong and building their lead up to 16, the Comets would end up surrendering a 19-2 run to the Quakers, making it a tie ballgame at 45-45 with just under 1:30 left in the third quarter. The saving grace was Laney Murphy making a last second three to put Cap back ahead 48-45 going into the final 10 minutes.

That would be about as close as Wilmington would get as Capital put together a 7-0 run to start the fourth quarter to get the lead back up to 10. Despite the Quakers' best efforts, CU stayed a step ahead, outscoring the hosts 20-17 in the final quarter for a 68-62 victory. 

THE NUMBERS
Samaree Perkins led all scorers and rebounders with 25 points and 14 boards, also leading the team in assists with four. She had a great shooting night, going 7-for-10 from the field, 3-for-5 from deep, and 8-for-9 from the free throw line. Perkins is now just three points away from becoming the 24th member of Capital's 1000-point club, currently with 997 in her career.

Bri O'Connor collected 20 points, two rebounds, one assist, one block, and one steal.

Laney Murphy finished with seven points, six rebounds, one assist, and one steal.

Maddi Weiland ended with five points and five rebounds as well as two assists and one block.

Kya Jordan scored four points with one assist.

Jenna Horsley had three points, adding two rebounds, one assist and one steal.

Tahirah Ellis recorded a team-high two blocks with two points and three rebounds.

Kendall Spreen scored two points, pulling down four boards, with one assist and one block.

UP NEXT
The Comets return to the Cap Center for the regular season finale on Saturday, hosting rival Otterbein in the Battle for the Oar at 5:00 p.m. Saturday will also serve as senior day for the Purple and White, with a special ceremony taking place.