Box Score OWENSBORO, Ky. — The Malone University women's basketball team (17-12, 12-8 G-MAC) pulled out an overtime upset in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Quarterfinals and defeated No. 2-seeded Kentucky Wesleyan College (21-6, 16-4 G-MAC) by a score of 68-62 on Tuesday afternoon at the Owensboro Sportscenter.

Heading into Tuesday's G-MAC Tournament quarterfinal, the Pioneers knew they'd be up against a tough and familiar opponent. Malone played and lost to Kentucky Wesleyan twice during the regular season, with the first meeting in Owensboro on January 4 resulting in a 78-57 victory for the hosts and the other meeting being a 72-64 win for the Panthers in Osborne Hall.

The game started off well for the visitors as they jumped out to a 13-8 lead and were able to stymie the Panther offense. The hosts fought back though and began to climb their way back into the game. An 8-0 run in the second quarter put Kentucky Wesleyan on top and going into the halftime break, the Panthers led 27-23. Despite trailing, head coach Selana Reale and her team could be proud of the positives from the first half. The Pioneers were out-rebounding the Panthers 21-13 and did not allow a single three-point field goal.

Coming out of halftime, both teams grappled for the lead but the Pioneers couldn't quite get back on top. Erin Kaufman put up seven points in the third quarter and drew her team within five heading into the fourth quarter. The guests came out strong in the fourth quarter and turned things around in a terrific way. Trailing 44-37, the Pioneers went on a 7-0 run via four Kaufman free throws and a Brinn Hunt triple to tie the game and put pressure on the hosts. The game suddenly swung in Malone's favor and the guests found themselves with a 54-49 lead with three and a half minutes to go. However, Kentucky Wesleyan took advantage of several misses and key turnovers to bring the game level and send the contest to overtime.

In the overtime period, the Pioneers came out of the gate running. A Kaufman layup, a Kyli Horn three, and a Brooklyn Troyer layup and free throw gave Malone a commanding 62-54 lead with just over a minute on the clock. Horn, Hunt, and Troyer made six free throws down the stretch and the Pioneers outscored the Panthers 31-20 in the fourth quarter and overtime to secure the win.

The Pioneers shot 41.8% (23-55) from the field, 33.3% (6-18) from three-point range, and were 82.4% (16-19) from the charity stripe. The Pioneers did turn the ball over 20 times to the Panthers' eight, but still managed to pull out the win.

Inside the Box Score

Kaufman led the Pioneers with 25 points and six rebounds.

Hunt added 15 points and seven rebounds.

Troyer had 13 points and six rebounds.

Horn had two 11 points, two rebounds, a steal, and an assist.

Nataley Armstrong had a nice game grabbing nine rebounds and dishing out four assists.

What's Next

The Pioneers will move on to the G-MAC semifinals where they will face No. 6 Trevecca Nazarene on Friday, March 8 at Ashland University. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.