MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – It was a roller coaster ride in the final minute as both side led in the closing 12.9 seconds, but it was the game-winning fallaway putback jumper from
Alli Jones '27 with 1.6 seconds remaining that sent the Wesleyan women's basketball team past Coast Guard in a 69-68 win on Wednesday night from Silloway Gymansium. The win is the Cardinals' (8-4) fourth in the past five games while the Bears (11-3) see their six-game win streak come to a halt.
Despite leading by as many as 18 points in the second half, Wesleyan had to weather a third quarter storm from the Bears who scored 30 points in the 10-minute stanza, making it a 54-54 game heading into the fourth. In that fourth quarter, Coast Guard took their first lead since the first quarter on a Kira Wood jumper with 3:47 remaining. Wesleyan came back with a pullup jumper from
Maggie Lee '23 followed by another mid-range jumper from
Olivia Quinn '26 before Lee again hit from 18-feet out as the Cardinals led 66-61 with 1:55 left.
It was later 67-63 Cardinals with 28.9 seconds left before Wood, who scored 23 of her game-high 26 points in the second half, nailed a three to cut the deficit to one. Coast Guard then forced a turnover and Julia Mann hit both free throws with 12.9 seconds left after she was fouled on a fast break.
The Cardinals called timeout and set up a play for
Felicia Fongemie '27 who took a handoff at the top of the key, driving the lane for a layup attempt that rolled all the way around the rim before eventually falling into the hands of Jones who immediately rose back up, banking in the game-winner with just 1.6 seconds left.
Coast Guard had a chance in the closing seconds, with Fongemie fouling a Bears player with just 0.3 seconds left. That foul was the last foul Wesleyan had to give as the Bears were left inbounding under the basket in the closing seconds. The inbounds went to Julia Mann who did get a shot off before the buzzer sounded, however the attempt didn't reach the rim and the Cardinal bench met the team at midcourt in celebration of the thrilling win.
Wesleyan were made to work for the one-point win as the Cardinals played a limited rotation with just seven players for most of the game. Coast Guard dominated the opening minutes, leading 12-2 before the Cardinals hit their first shot of the game, a Lee three-pointer with 4:04 left in the frame. Despite struggling on offense, the Cardinal defense kept Wesleyan in the game early, forcing Coast Guard into tough shots, before
Madi Gomez '24 hit a pair of three-pointers that ignited the team on a 14-0 run as the Cardinals led 16-14 after one.
The second quarter was more of the same, as Wesleyan forced 10 Coast Guard turnovers in the second period alone, scoring 10 of their 17 points off Bear turnovers in the frame. Wesleyan took a 24-14 lead on a Lee fast break layup and later stretched their advantage up to 12 points after Lee hit from deep.
Leading by nine at halftime, it was Lee who again sparked the Cardinal offense, hitting three-pointers on consecutive possessions to make it 41-27 Cardinals in the early going of the third quarter. That started a string of six straight trips down the floor with baskets, capped by Fongemie finishing a feed from
Alana Jones '24 on the fast break to give the Cardinals their biggest lead at 48-30.
Coast Guard started mounting their comeback attempt with an explosive 30-point third quarter that included six three-pointers while the Bears went 6-for-9 from long range. Wesleyan saw their 18-point lead disappear in just under seven minutes as the game was tied entering the fourth in what was a thrilling end to the game.
Lee was outstanding all night for the Cardinals, scoring a career-high 24 points on 9-for-16 shooting and 6-of-9 from three. She added five rebounds and three steals in 37 minutes The six made three's is a new career-high and the most by a Cardinal since
Brooke Guiffre '23 hit six against Hamilton on January 28, 2023.
Quinn finished with 18 points (6-14 FG) with nine rebounds, two assists, and two steals in 35 minutes. Fongemie tallied nine points, six rebounds, and a career-high six assists.
Alli Jones had five points, eight rebounds, four assists, and three steals in 26 minutes off the bench including the game-winner with 1.6 seconds left. The three steals and four assists for
Alli Jones are both new career-highs for the first-year.
Wood was outstanding for the Bears, netting a game-high 26 points (6-13 3FG) including 23 in the second half alone. Dorothy Stotts finished with 13 points, six assists, five steals, and four rebounds while Kelly Hagerty totaled 10 points and nine rebounds.
Next up for the Cardinals is a return to NESCAC play as Wesleyan hosts Conn. College on Sunday at 2 PM.
