Pioneers Fall to Warhawks in OT

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. - A big scoring night from UW-Platteville guard Caitlyn Tipton (Sr. / Rosendale, Wis.) was not quite enough for the Pioneers to knock off WIAC rival UW-Whitewater as the Warhawks escaped Williams Fieldhouse with a 71-68 overtime win Wednesday night.  Tipton, who has been able to return to action this season after missing the majority of 2019-20 due to injury, scored a career-high 27 points on near perfect shooting: 8-10 from the floor, 4-5 on three-point attempts, and 7-7 from the free throw line.  The loss drops Platteville to 1-4; Whitewater improves to 3-2.

The first quarter saw both teams struggle to find the bottom of the net while trading leads throughout.  The squads combined to make just seven baskets on 28 attempts.  By the end of the first frame, the Pioneers held a 13-9 advantage thanks in part to a 6-6 performance from the free throw line.  Late addition to the starting lineup, Lara Anger (So. / DeKalb, Ill.), came out of the gates quickly in her first collegiate start contributing 4 points and 4 rebounds.

The Pioneers built a little breathing room to begin the 2nd quarter with points on its first two possessions: a Taylor Gilbert (Jr. Kingston, Ill.) layup followed by a three from guard Kaylee Meyers (So. / Darlington, Wis.) to go up 18-9.  Later, with the Pioneers still up 22-15, Whitewater went to work on defense, ratcheted up their their pressure full court.  Platteville turnovers combined with timely Warhawk shooting led to a 17-3 Whitewater run, erasing their deficit and building to an 34-26 lead at the break.  Playing a big role in the Warhawk turnaround was a 12-0 shutout in points off of turnovers.

Coming out of halftime and now finding themselves in an 8-point hole, the Pioneers did not waste time cutting into their deficit.  On their first two possessions, Tipton knocked down a pair of three-pointers to bring the game back to 34-32.  As they did during their run in the 2nd, Whitewater went back to pressuring full court.  This time the Pioneers were able to maintain composure however and by the end of three had not only nearly matched their entire output of the first half (26 points in 1st half vs. 24 points in 3rd quarter), but also regained the lead, 50-49.  Tipton was the driving offensive force during the rally, scoring 14 points hitting all five shots taken including 3-3 from behind the arc.

After Whitewater pulled back in front and built a 5-point lead midway through the 4th, 59-54, the Pioneers once again began cutting into their deficit, not allowing the Warhawks to pull away.  With just under :40 remaining, Maiah Domask's (Sr. Waupun, Wis.) 3-point attempt from the left wing found nothing but the bottom of the net and put Platteville back in front, 61-59.  After a Johanna Taylor layup tied the game moments later, the Pioneers got the ball back and played for a last shot.  With seconds remaining, point guard Jai Clemons (Sr. / Chicago, Ill.) turned the corner and found some daylight.  Clemons running jumper to beat the clock went off glass, bounced tantalizingly on the rim before falling out and leaving the teams knotted at the end of regulation.

As was the case in regulation, overtime proved to be a back-and-forth affair.  The final five minutes saw 4 lead changes and 3 ties.  Whitewater's All-Conference post player Aleah Grundahl connected on a pair of free throws with :05.8 remaining to put the Warhawks up 71-68.  Out of timeouts, the Pioneers pushed the ball up the court but were unable to get off a 3-point attempt before the final horn.  Grundahl led the Warhawks with 25 points and 10 rebounds.

Domask finished with 14 points and 14 rebounds for her third straight double-double and fourth in 5 games this season.  Platteville made the most of their trips to the free throw line, going 20-25 from the charity stripe.

Neither team will be afforded much recovery time as they are set to face off again this Friday, February 19th at Whitewater.  Tip time is set for 7pm.