Wilson Lifts No. 2 Eagles At Buzzer
MetroSportsReport.com
MASON CITY - Tay Wilson hit a 15-footer with one second remaining Wednesday night to snap a 68-68 tie and give the second-ranked Kirkwood Eagles a riveting 70-68 victory over 13th-ranked NIACC in an ICCAC conference game in Mason City.
The win gave the Kirkwood women a commanding three-game lead in the conference standings over NIACC and DMACC with five games left in the season.
Kirkwood led NIACC by three points, 68-65, with time dwindling, but NIACC hit a long 3-pointer from about 28 feet to tie the game at 68-68 with eight seconds left.
Kirkwood Coach Kim Muhl called a timeout and instructed his players to feed Arika Wooldridge near the basket. Wooldridge got the ball and fed Wilson near the elbow of the foul line for the game-winning shot.
The Eagles raised their records to 23-3 overall and 9-0 in the conference with their 13th straight victory. NIACC fell to 19-6 overall and 6-3 in the league.
Kirkwood has won its nine conference games by an average of 23.8 points, but NIACC has given the Eagles their tightest games of the ICCAC campaign by far. Kirkwood won by nine points, 68-59, in Cedar Rapids earlier this season before the two-point squeaker Wednesday night.
Wooldridge and Mackenzie Jenkins both came off the bench to score 13 points for the Eagles. Wilson finished with eight points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals.
Awal Ajak also scored eight points. Leah Robinson provided seven points. Olivia Usher had six points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Kirkwood hosts Iowa Lakes Saturday at 1 p.m.
KIRKWOOD (70): Jenkins 6 0-0 13, Wilson 2 3-4 8, Puok 1 2-2 5, Axcell 1 0-0 3, Hurst 1 0-0 2, Ajak 3 2-2 8, Taylor 0 2-4 2, Robinson 3 1-2 7, Mensen 1 0-0 3, Usher 2 1-2 6, Wooldridge 5 2-2 13. Totals 25 13-18 70.
3-point goals - Kirkwood 7 (Jenkins 1, Wilson 1, Puok 1, Axcell 1, Mensen 1, Usher 1, Wooldridge 1).
