Box Score

RIPON, Wis. - The Ripon women's basketball team continued their winning ways Saturday afternoon, defeating Grinnell College 63-55. Not only did it mark the Red Hawks' longest winning streak in two years with their fourth consecutive victory, but it was also a historic milestone for Head Coach Julie Johnson, who became just the fourth coach in Midwest Conference history to win 300 career games. The win also marked her 200th MWC victory, which makes her the fourth coach to achieve that feat as well. 

Ripon (7-9, 6-5 MWC) never trailed in the game, scoring eight of the game's first 10 points. Grinnell (7-8, 6-5 MWC) cut the Red Hawks' lead to four with just under five minutes remaining in the half, but Ripon finished the period on a 12-6 run to take a double-digit lead at the intermission. Erin Lind was a big reason Ripon controled the game throughout, scoring 21 of her 29 points in the opening period, which saw Ripon shoot 47 percent (15-32) from the field.

The Red Hawks extended their lead to 14 in the second half, as Morgan Johnson scored the first two baskets of the period. Leading by 16 points after a Jill Van Eperen basket with under five minutes remaining, Grinnell made one final push, going on a 9-1 run to cut the lead to six with a minute and a half left in the game. That was as close as they would get however, as Ripon converted seven of their final 12 free throws in the final two minutes.

Lind's 29 points mark a career-high for the senior, while also tying her for 10th on Ripon's single game scoring list. She added 11 rebounds for her 18th career double-double and ninth this season. Van Eperen added 13 points, five rebounds and four assists, while Kacie Cullen added eight points off the bench. For the third consecutive game, the Red Hawks tied a season-low with 16 turnovers. They also made a season-high six 3-pointers, with four of those coming from Lind.

Grinnell was led by 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting from Alissa Hirsh. Toluwaloju Alabi added 14 points, while Michelle Briggs added six points and 10 rebounds. The Pioneers converted just one of their eight 3-pointers (13 percent), while making 16-of-30 free throws (53 percent) That included making 41 percent (9-22) of their free throws in the second half.

Ripon will try to continue their recent hot streak on Wednesday at Beloit College. That game will begin at 5 p.m. in Beloit, Wis. and can be seen live at http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/ripon.portal#.