MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – In yet another Little 3 instant classic, the Wesleyan women's basketball team used a 19-6 fourth quarter run, erasing an eight-point deficit to defeat Williams, 62-57, at home on Friday night. After a back-and-forth first half, Wesleyan (10-10, 3-4 NESCAC) held the Ephs (9-11, 3-4 NESCAC) to just 1-of-14 shooting in the fourth quarter to earn a thrilling conference and Little 3 victory.
 
With just over 30 seconds on the clock and the Cardinals leading 58-57, Caleigh Ryan '22 stole an errant pass from Williams' Ellie Tounkara. Emma Kiernan '24 was fouled seconds later and made the first free throw and missed the second, but Marina Petruzzi '22 secured a critical offensive rebound, allowing Maddie Clark '22 to head to the line, making 1-of-2 to make it 60-57 Cardinals with just over 20 ticks left on the clock.
 
Petruzzi then came up with the game-sealing play as she blocked Maggie Meehan's driving layup attempt in the waning seconds, effectively sealing the win for the Cardinals.
   
After seeing the Ephs put up 23 first quarter points, the Cardinal defense locked down Williams late to secure the dramatic home win. The Ephs went just 1-of-14 (7.1 percent) from the field in the fourth quarter, helping Wesleyan secure the successful comeback. The Cardinals rode a 10-0 run to open the fourth quarter, erasing what was a 51-43 Williams lead heading into the period.
 
Petruzzi starred for the Cardinals, finishing with 20 points (7-13 FG, 2-5 3FG, 4-4 FT), eight of which were scored in the fourth quarter alone. The senior guard also made key plays in the closing minute, grabbing the offensive rebound off Kiernan's FT miss and blocking Meehan's drive in the lane to seal the win. This marked the second 20+ point game for Petruzzi this season and the sixth of her career.
 
Ryan stuffed the stat sheet with a monster performance that saw her finish with 13 points, 15 rebounds, two assists, three blocks and three steals as she played 39 of 40 minutes in this one. The senior wing recorded her seventh double-double of the season while nine of her 15 rebounds came on the offensive glass in tonight's win. Over the last four games, Ryan is averaging 14.5 rebounds per game.
   
Meehan (19 points) and Arianna Gerig (17 points, 12 rebounds) combined for more than 60 percent of the Ephs' points while Maddy Mandyck secured a team-high 13 rebounds, including five on the offensive end.
 
Both offenses were on their A-game in the early going. After Meehan hit a floater off the glass on the opening possession, Ryan responded with a make of her own and the two teams were off from there. Neither side led by more than three points for the entirely of the first quarter, which ended with the Ephs leading 23-20 thanks to a buzzer-beating three from Brooke Krivickas.
 
Early in the second quarter, Meehan hit a three-pointer to cap off a 9-2 run and give Williams a 32-22 lead. The Cardinals, however, managed to cut the deficit to 36-32 at the half and held the Ephs to just four points in the final 5:34 of the quarter.
 
Petruzzi and Ryan sparked an 8-2 Wesleyan run to open the second half, with Ryan hitting a layup to give the Cardinals a 40-38 lead, their first since the first quarter. After Gerig responded with a difficult, driving reverse layup to tie the score, Maggie Lee '23 hit a three as Wesleyan retook the lead.
 
Williams then scored 11 unanswered, the last seven of which came from Meehan or Gerig, as the scoring run spanned the remainder of the third quarter to give the Ephs a 51-43 lead heading into the fourth which is where the Cardinals took the game over.
 
In the final frame, Wesleyan managed enough timely baskets to back up what was a stellar defensive performance. After the 10-0 run, once again spearheaded by Petruzzi and Ryan, Gerig responded with another tough shot in traffic to tie the score, only for Petruzzi to immediately answer back with a triple that gave the Cardinals a 56-53 lead with 4:36 left to play.
 
The Ephs chipped away at the Wesleyan lead with two free throws by Gerig, but Petruzzi hit an elbow jumper with exactly three minutes on the clock to give the Cardinals their three-point lead back. Gerig, however, drew another shooting foul and hit two more free throws to once again make it a one-point game and give the Ephs a chance to win it in the final minutes.
 
Williams, however, couldn't buy a game-changing shot thanks to Ryan's steal and Petruzzi's block late in the final minute.
 
Wesleyan looks to sweep the home weekend with a Sunday afternoon showdown against Middlebury (10-8, 4-2 NESCAC) who come in having suffered a road loss to Trinity on Wednesday night after having previously won three straight.