NORTHFIELD, Minn. – Senior Ziling Zhen capped an 18-point comeback for the St. Olaf College women's basketball team with a steal and layup in the final seconds to give the Oles a 59-57 non-conference victory over Martin Luther College on Wednesday afternoon at Skoglund Center.

After St. Olaf (6-4) tied the game with 13 seconds to go on a layup by sophomore Joy Brandenstein, Martin Luther (6-4) had the opportunity to hold the ball and take the final shot of regulation, but Zhen poked the ball away at mid-court and went in for an uncontested layup with 3.5 seconds to go for the game-winning basket. The Knights got a shot off on their final possession, but Ava Stein's turnaround, off-balance jumper hit the side of the backboard from the right side.

The victory came after the Oles trailed 48-30 with 2:06 remaining in the third quarter and came in St. Olaf's first game since Dec. 11. It was also St. Olaf's 10th consecutive victory in the series between the two programs going back to 1995. The Knights were playing their second game in as many days.

Sophomore Bree Wilkerson was 6-for-9 from the field, including 3-for-4 from three-point range, on her way to a career-high 16 points to pace St. Olaf, which shot 52.0 percent (13-for-25) from the field in the second half after hitting just 25.0 percent (8-for-32) of its shots in the opening 20 minutes. Sophomore Chloee Smith added 15 points and a game-high seven rebounds to join Wilkerson in double figures.

St. Olaf's late comeback spoiled a 26-point performance from Martin Luther's Mya Morris in the loss. Morris shot 8-for-15 from the field, including 6-for-11 from behind the arc, to lead the Knights, who also got 11 points on 3-for-4 from three-point range from Lydia Feidt. Martin Luther shot just 22.2 percent (2-for-9) as a team in the fourth quarter and had six turnovers in the quarter.

Morris got going early for Martin Luther, scoring 10 first-quarter points to help the visitors to an 18-8 lead after 10 minutes. After a layup by Smith started the scoring, St. Olaf went scoreless until a three-pointer by senior Sarah Tangen with 5:08 to go in the quarter that made the score 8-5. The Knights' defense held the Oles to 21.4 percent shooting (3-for-14) in the first quarter.

Martin Luther took its largest lead of the first half at 22-8 with 6:31 to go in the second quarter, but senior Sophia Kormann scored the next five points to get the Oles' deficit back to single digits. Morris' third three-pointer of the first half with 12 seconds remaining got the Knights' lead back to 14 before Brandenstein hit a running jump shot at the buzzer to make it a 33-21 game at the half.

Morris scored 10 of Martin Luther's 15 third-quarter points, as the visitors built a 48-30 lead late in the quarter for their largest lead of the game. The Oles scored the final five points of the quarter on a corner three-pointer by Zhen and a layup by Smith to reduce their deficit to 48-35 entering the fourth.

Early in the fourth, St. Olaf extended its run to 10-0 just 90 seconds in on five quick points from Wilkerson to close the gap to eight. Morris ended the run with her sixth three-pointer with 7:33 to play, but that marked Morris' final points of the game. Trailing by six with approaching two minutes left, St. Olaf made it a one-point game when Zhen found Smith for a layup and Wilkerson for a three-pointer that brought the Oles within 56-55 with 1:42 on the clock.

In the final minute, Smith hit Brandenstein on a backdoor cut with 13 seconds to go after Wilkerson tracked down an offensive rebound to keep the possession alive, setting up Zhen's heroics in the final seconds. Zhen's bucket capped a comeback that saw the Oles outscore the Knights by a 24-9 margin in the final quarter.

After completing its seven-game non-conference schedule wit a 6-1 record, St. Olaf will return to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) play at home against Bethel University on Saturday, Jan. 4. The game is scheduled for a 3 p.m. start in game two of a men's/women's doubleheader.