MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – In a game that saw neither side lead by more than seven points, the back-and-forth battle between storied Little Three rivals came down to overtime where the Wesleyan women's basketball team outscored Amherst 15-10 to secure a 70-65 home win over the Mammoths on Saturday afternoon. Wesleyan (6-10, 1-3 NESCAC) snaps a three-game losing streak and defeats Amherst (11-4, 1-2 NESCAC) for just the second time in the last 37 meetings.
 
Despite coming into Saturday's contest with just eight healthy players, Wesleyan controlled the tempo of play and held a lead for more than 28 minutes in a hotly contested dual. Tori DaCosta '25 was the key cog for the Cardinals as the senior put together the best game of her career, finishing with 24 points (11-23 FG) and a career-high 18 rebounds to go along with two blocks in 37 minutes.
 
The first quarter featured 17 turnovers between the two sides as both attempted to push the pace, with Wesleyan having the most success, building a 15-8 lead before an Anna Tranum three-pointer made it 17-14 Wesleyan at the end of the frame.
 
Wesleyan had plenty of possessions in the second quarter, as the Cardinals grabbed six offensive rebounds in the stanza, but shot just 4-of-20 from the floor on their way to just 11 points. Despite the struggles, the Cardinals held their largest lead of the game at 26-19 but the Mammoths used a 9-0 run to take a two-point lead into halftime.
 
The script flipped once again in the third quarter where DaCosta and Felicia Fongemie '27 scored 15 of Wesleyan's 17 points in the stanza to head into the fourth with a 45-43 lead. Wesleyan did well to respond to Amherst who took a 43-36 lead, their largest of the game, only to see the Cardinals respond with a 9-0 run of their own, holding the Mammoths scoreless over the final 4:15.
 
A nervy fourth quarter saw just 22 combined points for the two sides. Wesleyan led 55-51 with 2:35 remaining but couldn't get anything to fall down the stretch. Macie Nugent hit a jumper before Laura Mendell sunk both free throws with 27 seconds left to tie the score at 55-55. Amherst had a chance to win the game in regulation, taking the ball back with 25 seconds left, but all they could muster was a contested 18-foot jumper from Reagan Pahl that fell short.
 
Playing in their second overtime game of the season, Wesleyan proved up to the task, managing to break through with a 15-point quarter despite three players playing with four fouls for most of the extra session. Aviva Schnitzer '28, who was stellar in her first career start, got the scoring started with a crafty jumper deep in the lane and Olivia Quinn '26 followed with a three-point play on the next possession.
 
Fongemie hit a step back jumper, giving Wesleyan points on three straight possessions, and after two defensive stands, Quinn made two free throws to stretch the Cardinals' lead to 64-58. The Mammoths cut the gap to 64-61 with 42 seconds left and chose to play the foul game early in the clock, but to no avail as Meghan Kirck knocked down both free throws and after Annie McCarthy missed a three-pointer, Schnitzer went 2-for-2 from the charity stripe.
 
Amherst didn't go away, making it a three-point game with 11 seconds left, but Kirck held her nerve and sunk both free throws, icing away the 70-65 OT win.
 
Wesleyan gutted out the win despite going just 1-for-11 from three and seeing their leading scorer Quinn exit for nearly six minutes in the second half after picking up her fourth foul.
 
The Cardinals also outrebounded the Mammoths 51-37 (+14) including a 16-7 edge in offensive boards which led to a 15-4 advantage in second chance points.
 
Fongemie joined DaCosta in double figures with 15 points to go along with nine rebounds, and four assists. Quinn finished with 13 points while Kirck had six points, five assists, four rebounds, and two steals. Schnitzer played well throughout, as the first-year contributed eight points, eight rebounds, five steals, and two assists in 41 minutes. The five steals for Schnitzer are the most by a Cardinal in a single-game this season.
 
Wesleyan looks to get back in the win column on Monday night as the Cardinals play host to Worcester State at 6 PM.