MARIETTA — It was a classic Ohio Athletic Conference slugfest for the first 32 minutes of the game as the Wilmington College men’s basketball team battled No. 9 Marietta Saturday.

Neither team was able to gain a double-figure lead and the contest featured 13 lead changes and 13 ties during those 32 minutes. Ultimately, the experience of Marietta was too much for an inexperienced Wilmington team and the Pioneers escaped with the 81-72 OAC win at the Ban Johnson Arena.

After senior Zach McCorkle gave Wilmington the lead at 62-61 with 8:33 remaining, Marietta scored eight straight points to take the lead for good. Another McCorkle basket pulled the Fightin’ Quakers (1-5, 0-2) to within two with 1:33 remaining.

A foul on a three-pointer led to two free throws, and a rebound on a missed third attempt that led to a lay-up, and the Marietta lead was back to seven.

McCorkle finished with 18 points and 7 rebounds to lead Wilmington, while sophomore Christian Jones added 17 points.

Freshman Kevin Lewis added 8 points and 6 rebounds, while sophomore D.J. Iles contributed 8 points and a team-high 3 assists.