RIPON, Wis. - Riding a season-long eight-game winning streak into Saturday's Midwest Conference Tournament Championship Game, Ripon's season came to an end in heartbreaking fashion, as they lost to Cornell College 82-79 in double overtime, giving the Rams an automatic bid to next weekend's NCAA Division-III Tournament. The game featured eight ties and 12 lead changes, with neither team leading by more than six points after halftime.

Cornell (19-8), who reached their second-highest win total in school history, got out to a quick 7-2 lead, before Ripon (18-9) used a 29-14 run to take the game's largest lead of 10 on a layup by Luke Meinholz. Cornell would then score the final five points of the half to cut Ripon's lead to five, trailing 31-26 at the break.

The Rams also scored the first five points of the second half, to tie the score at 31 just two and a half minutes into the period. Jaylen Mahone then gave Ripon the lead again, only to see a Logan Chistenson 3-pointer on the ensuing possession give Cornell their first lead since the 14 and a half minute mark in the first half. The Rams would take a six-point advantage mid-way through the second half on a Cooper Kabela 3-pointer, but Ripon battled back to tie the game at 48 on another jumper by Mahone. Neither team led by more than three for the remainder of regulati9on, with a trio of Cornell free throws in the final minute tying the game at 62 to send the game to overtime.

In what was mostly a defensive battle throughout, both teams scored just six points in the first extra period, with Kabela tying the score at 68 on a 3-pointer in the final minute. Both teams missed a potential winning shot in the final seconds, sending the game to another extra frame to determine a champion. Ripon was able to mount a four-point lead on a 3-pointer by Drew Jorgensen with just under one minute remaining, but Cornell scored the final seven points of the contest to secure the victory and the Tournament Championship.

Ripon shot 46 percent (31-68) in the game, led by Mahone's 14 points and five rebounds off the bench. Meinholz also came off the bench to score a career-high 13 points, making all five of his field goal attempts. Ryan Steffes also chipped in with 13 points, while Owen Theune recorded his fourth career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Cornell converted 47 percent (28-60) of their shots, including 56 percent (10-18) of their 3-pointers. They were led by Kabela and Marcus Quirk, who each scored 25 points. Jordan Magnani added 15 points, as Cornell's starting lineup scored all but two of their team's points.