RIPON, Wis. - Ripon's women's basketball team led from start to finish Thursday night en route to their ninth win in their last 10 games, as they defeated Lake Forest College by a score of 64-53. The Red Hawks got off to a fast start, holding the Foresters to just 14 percent (4-28) shooting in the first half, helping them coast to victory.

The Red Hawks scored the game's first four points, which was part of an 8-2 run to start the game. After leading by just two entering the second quarter, Ripon (12-8, 11-2 MWC) expanded their lead to 13 at halftime, closing the half on a 13-3 run.

Lake Forest (9-11, 8-5 MWC) cut that lead to four mid-way through the third quarter, but a 16-7 run to close the period put the Red Hawks up by 13 again entering the fourth and final frame. The Foresters again pulled to within four with three minutes remaining in the contest, but that's as close as they would get, as the Ripon scored seven unanswered points to end the game.

The Red Hawks held the rebounding edge 53-26, with 21 of their rebounds coming on the offensive end of the court. They were led by Maggie Oimoen's 19 points and 11 rebounds (eight offensive), marking her 17th career double-double, leaving her just two points shy of becoming the sixth player in program history to score 1,200 career points. Jesi Nay added 13 points on 3-of-6 shooting from 3-point range, while Alyassa Burgess recorded nine points, three rebounds, four assists, and three blocked shots. Natalie Geiger and Caitie Carpenter each recorded career-highs of 12 rebounds and five assists, respectively.

Lake Forest was led by Kelsey Burton's 18 points, four assists, and three steals. Zaria Sydnor added 10 points, three assists, and three steals, while Maggie Kersting scored eight points off the bench.

The win keeps Ripon tied for first atop the Midwest Conference standings. They will be in action again on Saturday when they'll host Lawrence University at 1 p.m. on what will be Ripon's annual Alumni Basketball Day. That game can be seen live at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/ripon/.