Written by: Zachary Worstell (zdw001@marietta.edu)
The Pioneers have been eliminated from the OAC playoffs. The Marietta College women’s basketball team finished the regular season 12-13 overall and 7-9 in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC). In the quarterfinals the Pioneers faced Mount Union on the road. In Alliance the Pios could not get ahead and lost to the Purple Raiders 74-57.
The women’s basketball season started out cold. As while they began with a dominant 82-67 home victory over Bethany College, they lost four straight afterwards. However, two of which were vs ranked schools.
First, Marietta lost to ex-OAC compadre John Carroll University on the road 68-54. Next, Marietta was swept at the Denison Sara Lee Classic by Franklin College 73-67 and by Transylvania University 72-53. Then, the Lady Pios lost to the ranked Washington & Jefferson at home 81-65. However, the Pioneers recovered in their following game as they received a 73-63 ranked win over Carnegie Mellon University.
Sitting at 2-4, Marietta won the rest of their remaining non-conference games. All of which were on the road. Marietta started off by defeating Mount St. Joseph 62-55, then they beat Case Western Reserve 67-66. Lastly, Marietta defeated Wittenberg University 60-52 to finish 5-4 in non-conference games. Which was an overall downgrade from last year’s 6-1 record against non-conference opponents.
Marietta was swept in the first three OAC games that wrapped up the 2025 calendar year. They lost by one point versus Capital University, 59-58 and then they lost to a ranked Baldwin Wallace team 62-51. Ending the year vs Otterbein, the Pioneers lost 64-44.
Fortunately, for the Pios, they were able to recover in the new year. Marietta started January off with a four-game winning streak. The Pioneers demolished Wilmington College at home 87-47 then battled into overtime versus Mount Union but came out with a 76-70 victory. A few days later Marietta made it look easy versus Heidelberg as they won 84-46. Finally, Marietta wrapped up their streak with a win over Ohio Northern 64-55.
Unfortunately, Marietta’s next game came down to the last second, as while at Muskingum the Pioneers lost by 1 point. The game was tied 68-68 with three minutes left, but the Muskies got ahead and ultimately won 73-72. Then Marietta lost their rematch versus Capital 85-79. However, the came back and won their second game versus Mount Union 86-78.
Marietta was unable to pick up wins in their rematches versus Baldwin Wallace or Otterbein. The Pioneers lost to the Yellow Jackets at home 89-66, then lost to the Cardinals on the road 71-66. Hence, they fell to 5-7 in the OAC and 9-11 overall.
Marietta’s next match at Wilmington was not as easy as the first as the game was tied 60 all at the end of the fourth quarter. Although, the women dominated overtime with a series of good free throws for a 74-64 win.
Marietta’s rematch versus Muskingum also went into overtime. The Muskies tied the game 72-72 with two seconds left on a good three-point shot. Kelsey Harlan then led the team in the first overtime however neither side gained an edge. This time it was the Pios who tied it all up with a TJ Carpenter layup. Marietta was not able to keep up in the second overtime as they were outscored 14-9 for a 97-92 loss.
The team had their last home game of the season versus Heidelberg, and here they put on another dominated performance. They beat the Student Princes 102-67.
For the last road game of the season Marietta faced Ohio Northern. The Pioneers held the lead until the final two minutes when the Bears pulled away. This ended the Pios regular season with a 77-73 loss
Fortunately for the Lady Pios, they qualified for the OAC postseason tournament with a 7-9 record. They face Mount Union on the road in the quarterfinals on Tuesday February 24th at 7:00 p.m.
The game can be watched at Flo College here go.flocollege.com/partner/oac.
