In an overtime thriller, Youngstown State (8-15, 4-8 HL) came up with the bigger defensive plays down the stretch, and pulled out a 65-59 win over UIC (4-19, 1-11 HL) at UIC Pavilion Saturday afternoon.

UIC scored the last five points of regulation to force the extra session.  The Penguins' Alison Smolinski missed two free throws with 1:15 left to keep the door open for a Flames comeback.  Terri Bender barged through the door as she converted a three point play with just over a minute left.  Then the Flames forced a shot clock violation, and on their ensuing possession Bender got a huge offensive rebound and made a layup to tie the game with 24 seconds on the clock.

On the last possession of regulation, Indiya Benjamin was able to drive the lane but her shot was blocked out of bounds by Brittany Byrd.  There were two official video reviews in the last two seconds to determine possession, but neither team could muster any offense in the final ticks.  On that last possession, Flames head coach Regina Miller switched up her defense and had Bender, who had been on Benjamin the entire game, guard Smolinski, who had made three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.  Though she didn't get a touch in the end of regulation, Smolinski finished 5-10 from downtown and scored a game high 20 points, five of which came in overtime.

The Flames won the opening tap in OT, and Bender found Byrd open for a three pointer.  The Flames' senior point guard had a transcendent game, finishing with 17 points (a season high), eight assists, four rebounds, and three steals.  She also held Benjamin to 1-7 from the floor, just five points, and five turnovers to match her five assists.

Smolinski answered Byrd's triple with a three point play, and the Flames would not make another field goal in overtime until the closing seconds.  In between, they missed six straight shots and went just 1-for-4 from the free throw line.  "We left a lot of points out there, especially on missed layups and free throws," Miller said.  "If we had made those shots, we could have won and not even needed overtime."

The fourth quarter alone featured an abundance of excitement and big plays, in a game that never saw either team lead by more than six points until the final 10 seconds, and had eight ties and nine lead changes.  After Youngstown State closed the third quarter on a 7-0 run to take a four point lead, Bender took on the scoring load and brought the Flames even.  Gabryelle Johnson made consecutive baskets to give UIC a one point lead, and then forced held balls twice within a minute to help the Flames keep momentum on their final run.

UIC had a fast start to the game.  They grabbed four steals in the first five minutes, but Youngstown State found their composure and assembled an 8-0 run.  They held a four point lead at the end of the first quarter, but the Flames went on a 10-0 run capped by a Tyra Carlsten-Handberg three pointer that gave them a 21-15 lead at the 6:26 mark of the second quarter.  Both teams would have troubles offensively, combining to go scoreless for over three minutes.  Then Youngstown State rattled off three straight buckets until Bender made two free throws in the closing seconds to tie the game.  She then stole the ball from Benjamin to ensure Youngstown State would not get a final look before halftime.

The Penguins got their first road win of the season despite very little contributions from their leading scorer, Mary Dunn.  She missed the last two games with an ankle injury and was only on the floor for six minutes Saturday.  Melinda Trimmer picked up the slack, scoring a season high 11 points.  The Penguins went 12-28 on three pointers.

Byrd (10 points) joined Bender as the only Flames in double figures.  Taylor Toney had a game high 8 rebounds, but only scored two points on 1-11 shooting before fouling out with 3:30 remaining in the fourth quarter.

The Flames will leave Chicago for the first time in three weeks when they visit Northern Kentucky next Thursday.