Simpson wins overtime thriller at Central

PELLA, Iowa – Haley Rasmussen scored a season-high 24 points, Cassie Nash logged a double-double, and the Simpson College women's basketball team defeated Central 83-79 in a midweek overtime thriller.

Dylan Holland provided Simpson its first lead of the game at the 3:52 mark of the fourth quarter after Macy Gaskill, Rasmussen and Anna Wanek strung together three 3-pointers to tie the game at 62-62. The two squads went back and forth as time wound down but neither team was able to convert on their final possessions of regulation, sending the game to overtime tied at 70-all.

After six points were traded, Rasmussen sank a pair of free throws to put the Storm ahead by two with 1:18 remaining. Central reclaimed the advantage with a Hannah Dau triple and got the ball back with 35 seconds left, but Simpson's defense stood tall and forced a missed basket that led to Nash getting fouled on the rebound. The senior made both her attempts at the line and hauled in one final rebound on a miss from Allison Van Gorp before Wanek and Rasmussen closed the game with free throws.

The Storm (9-8, 4-4 A-R-C) shot 53.3 percent from the floor in the second half, nearly 20.0 percent better than their efficiency in the first half which saw Simpson trail by as many as 10. The Dutch opened the game on an 11-4 run but the margin remained under seven points until Van Gorp and Abby Johnson rattled off eight straight for a 34-24 Central lead with 1:29 left. Simpson got seven of those points back before the break thanks to five points from Rasmussen and two from Wanek.

Rasmussen went 9-for-18 from the floor and scored 10 of her 24 points in the fourth quarter to help Simpson get over the hump. Holland also came up clutch late in the game, scoring the game-tying basket with 29 seconds left in regulation and Simpson's first two field goals of overtime.

The Dutch managed to contain Nash to six points in the first half but a 10-point third quarter helped her finish the night with 19 on 8-for-14 shooting. She completed her first double-double of the season with 10 rebounds and had six assists, three blocks and two steals.

Wanek made 7 of 8 free throws en route to 17 points, while Gaskill finished the night with nine points.

The Dutch (4-13, 1-7 A-R-C) were led by Kelsey Hurley and Van Gorp who each scored 24 points and combined for 20 rebounds. Johnson added 17 points for the home team and Kassidy Steel had 10 assists and nine rebounds.

Up Next
Simpson faces Coe in another road match on Saturday at 2 p.m.