The Kansas Wesleyan women’s basketball team knew how challenging Wilson Field House can get.

KWU ignored the magic from the arena.

The Coyotes forced 25 turnovers, picked up 20 offensive rebounds and the Coyotes edged the Ottawa Braves 49-45 on Wednesday. Kansas Wesleyan snapped a four-game losing skid in the regular season at Wilson Field House.

Nearly half the points came in the opening quarter as Wesleyan connected on five triples, collecting a 21-18 cushion in the process.

Ottawa bounced back to knot up the score at 21-21 with 8:50 to go in the half. The Braves didn’t reclaim the lead until 5:10 remaining in the second quarter. The Coyotes’ response was a 9-0 run, building a 30-23 advantage at halftime.

After keeping that seven-point margin after the third, Wesleyan’s cold shooting allowed Ottawa to get back in the game. The Braves received a huge trey from sophomore Katlyn Hughes, putting Ottawa head 41-40 wih 4:03 to go in the contest.

The lead flipped from there, but the go-ahead back by senior, and Salina Ortho Player of the Game, Taryn Frazier, put the Coyotes up for good. Senior Mariah Knox nailed two free throws to ice the game with four seconds left as the Coyote defense withstood to cracks at giving up the lead.

Kansas Wesleyan (12-9, 9-4) was 27 percent from the field for the entire game. Four players had seven points in sophomores Haleigh Bradford and Courtney Heinen, freshman Virja Lewis and junior Gabbie Miller. Wesleyan limited Ottawa to 32 percent from the floor.

Wesleyan travels to Lindsborg for the First Bank Kansas – Smoky Hill Showdown on Saturday. Pregame coverage against Bethany starts at 4:45 on FM 104.9.

Ottawa 78, Kansas Wesleyan 46

Much like the women, the Coyote men were frigid cold.

Kansas Wesleyan was 28 percent from the field for the game, but the Coyotes hung tough for a half. After trailing by five, Wesleyan grabbed the upperhand with 10:01 remaining in the first half. The two-point cushion didn’t last long as a three by Ottawa’s Devin Perez allowed the Braves to cruise to a 31-23 halftime lead.

The margin was pushed to 58-32 after an 18-0 explosion by the Braves, who were 62 percent from the floor in the second half.

KWU freshman Darius Hammond was the Salina Ortho Player of the Game, finishing with a team-high nine points. Wesleyan (9-10, 7-6) fell for the third consecutive game. The Coyotes take on Bethany on Saturday in Lindsborg.

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