BELOIT, Wis. - Ripon kept pace with the top of the Midwest Conference Wednesday night, defeating Beloit College in a scrappy 65-59 victory. That keeps the Red Hawks tied for first in the MWC standings, while also giving them a league-leading sixth consecutive victory. Ripon dominated the post all night, scoring 48 points in the paint, while also out-rebounding the Buccaneers 47-35.

Beloit (3-13, 2-7 MWC) jumped out to an early 7-2 lead, but Ripon (9-7, 8-1 MWC) answered with 10 consecutive points to take a lead that they would never relinquish. Beloit would pull to within one late in the first quarter, but a three-point play from Maggie Oimoen gave Ripon a four-point advantage heading into the second quarter. The Red Hawks would lead by as many as nine in the first half, and led by six at the half.

Ripon continued to keep Beloit at arms length in the second half, outscoring Beloit 13-11 in the third quarter to take an eight-point lead into the final quarter. The Buccaneers made things interesting late in the game, cutting the lead to three with 16 seconds remaining, but Ripon put the game on ice by making three of their final four free throws.

Ripon shot 42 percent (25-60) on the night. They were led by Oimoen's 19 points on 8-for-13 shooting, to go along with eight rebounds (four offensive). Natalie Geiger added 11 points and three boards, while Laurissa Johnson scored 10 points, to go along with five rebounds and a team-high three assists.

Shelby Kline led Beloit with 16 points and four assists, while Candace Cunningham finished with 14 points, eight rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Kelly McLean chipped in with 12 points and seven boards.

The Red Hawks will look to remain atop the MWC standings on Saturday when they'll host St. Norbert, which handed Ripon their only conference loss this season. Saturday's game will begin at 1 p.m. at Willmore Center in Ripon, and can be seen live at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/ripon/.