ALBION, Mich. – It was all about belief for Doreen Carden's team.

Belief that they could upend D3hoops.com's No. 9 ranked team in the country, Hope, and break their seven-game skid against the Flying Dutch.

Belief in keeping their composure during high-pressure moments.

Belief of using a raucous Kresge Gymnasium crowd and Brit Pit student section to their advantage.

Fueled by this confidence and trust in each other, the Albion women's basketball squad defeated Hope, 60-54, in a dramatic overtime contest.

"I think playing in Kresge for some teams is mental, so it was great to beat them here," Carden said. "I think we've grown a ton since day one, and we're only getting better. I'm happy for our kids.

"I can't even put it into words."

Albion held strong in a back-and-forth first quarter that featured four ties and two lead changes while ending in a 12-12 knot. Payton Baker notched key three-pointers on back-to-back possessions less than halfway through the period.
 
The Britons found themselves down by four twice in the second but went on a 12-6 run in the half's final five minutes to go up 28-26 at the intermission.
 
Despite a last-second triple on a fastbreak from the Flying Dutch to end the stanza, Ava Guilford got the scoring run started with a three of her own and DJ Pannell answered with one herself with 49 seconds left to aid in the effort.
 
Hope held a five-point advantage three times throughout the third, but the Britons retook the lead on a Meghan Trewhella layup with 3:13 to go. Two free throws from her near the end of the quarter allowed Albion to take a 42-40 advantage heading into the fourth.
 
The Flying Dutch proceeded to an 8-0 run to find themselves down six as the stanza began. However, Albion's confidence never wavered with a Guilford three (5:45 left) and Honnen layup (1:32 left) keeping it a one-possession game.
 
Trewhella knocked down both attempts from the charity stripe with 58 seconds left after reaching the bonus to get within one, 52-51.
 
Then, Guilford got to the line – missing her first but making her second to knot it at 52 apiece.
 
Hope had a chance to win the game in regulation, but a layup was blocked by Guilford in the paint with three seconds remaining to force the extra period.
 
The sticky defense continued into overtime.
 
The Britons outscored the Flying Dutch, 8-2, in the stanza and forced Hope into shooting 0-for-7 from the field, including 0-for-4 from beyond the arc.
 
Six of their points came at the free throw line, and despite Guilford fouling on an Anna Richards three-point attempt with 1:33 left and Albion holding onto a 56-53 lead, Honnen missed two of the shots with a frenzied Brit Pit as the backdrop.
 
A Honnen layup with 34 seconds remaining sealed the deal, as the student section stormed Coach Mike Turner Court when the horn sounded.
 
"I thought the atmosphere was great, and it brought a ton of energy," Carden said. "I think our kids feed off that. It could have helped will us to a win."
 
Trewhella led the way with a game-high 24 points, while Guilford tied her career high with 19. Baker also chipped in nine points and a team-high nine rebounds.
 
The Britons held the Flying Dutch to 29.9% from the field, their second-lowest total of the season, and went just 9-of-16 from the line.
 
"I thought defensively, we stuck to our game plan," Carden said. "We didn't give them a lot of easy baskets, and we did a really good job of forcing them to shoot the ball. I think the physicality was awesome, and we were disciplined and hard-nosed.
 
"A lot of that's just effort and the will to want it, and I feel like our kids had that tonight."
 
With victories over MIAA powerhouses Hope and Calvin in the same season for the first time since 2003-04 when the Britons won the conference tournament, Carden is hoping to continue to build the momentum as postseason play approaches holding the No. 3 seed (14-5, 7-3 MIAA) as the standings hold now.
 
"We've come a long way, and we've grown a ton," Carden said. "Sitting at third for us is something that we haven't done in a while.
 
"Now we're believing that we have a chance to win the conference. That's our goal."