AVE MARIA, Fla. (January 18, 2018) – Senior Ashley Perry scored 22 points and pulled down 10 boards while fellow-senior Tiffany Zito added 12 rebounds, but it would not be enough as the Webber International University women's basketball team fell to Ave Maria University, 68-61, in an overtime heart stopper on Thursday evening at the Tom Golisano Field House.

With the loss, Webber's record fell to 7-13 overall and 2-8 in The Sun Conference. Ave Maria's record rose to 13-5 and 6-4 as the Gyrenes won for only the second time in their last six conference games.

With the Warriors leading 52-51 in the final minute of regulation, Breyonna Reed earned a block on a Gyrenes possession with only 40 seconds left, but Ave maintained possession with 35 seconds remaining.

Next, after a jump ball with nine seconds left, Ave again kept possession and then watched Macarena Corral hit a deep 3-pointer from nearly 30 feet away to make it 54-52 Gyrenes. It was the first lead of the entire game for Ave Maria, and was only the fifth point of the game and fourth 3-pointer of the season for Corral.

However, the Warriors came up with a big shot of their own as after inbounding the ball with only 2.5 seconds on the clock, Zito banked in a jump shot from the foul line at the buzzer to send it into overtime.

Ave started off the overtime period with another 3-pointer by Corral to make it 57-54 before Zito answered with an and-one on Webber's next possession to tie it up again. Another three by Corral made it 60-57 Gyrenes with 2:55 left. It was her third 3-pointer in a two-and-a-half-minute span after having only hit three 3-pointers all season entering the contest.

Ave Maria then went ahead by seven at 64-57 after a 7-0 run with 1:34 left in overtime, and then Webber's nemesis from the first meeting between the two teams on November 28, 2017, Sarah Miller, burned the Warriors again as she scored with one second left on the shot clock to make it 66-59 with only 49 seconds left and put the game away.

Miller's backbreaker came after she finished with an impressive stat line of 26 points, 22 rebounds and four blocks for the Gyrenes during the first meeting between Webber and Ave Maria. Miller again netted a double-double with 12 rebounds, 10 points and five steals this time around on Thursday.

For Webber, Emmarrie Carmen was the only other Warrior besides Perry in double figures in scoring as she finished with 11 points. Montrese Weller added eight points and Reed added five assists.

Webber led by as much as 16 points in the second half (40-24) as Weller hit her second 3-pointer of the game with 3:45 left in the third quarter.

However, the Gyrenes proceeded to go on a 9-0 run between the end of the third quarter and the first possession of the fourth quarter to get within seven at 40-33.

Perry answered 13 seconds later for the Warriors to make it 42-33, and then Ave got its deficit down to two to finish off a huge 17-3 run with six and half minutes left in the game before Zito responded with a score 16 seconds later to make it 45-41 Warriors.

Ave made it a one-point margin at 46-45 before Perry scored again, this time on the fourth assist of the game by Reed, to make it 48-45 with 4:19 left. Perry then made two free throws and Carmen scored a layup on the assist from Perry to make it 52-46 with 2:57 remaining.

The Warriors will return to action against the second-ranked team in the country, Southeastern University, which is still undefeated in regular-season action, at 2 p.m. inside the Sabbagh Athletic Center on Saturday, January 20. On November 16, 2017, Southeastern, ranked No. 4 in the NAIA at the time, took down the Warriors by 39, 92-53, in Lakeland, Florida.