LAKE FOREST, Ill. - More than one year since their last game, due to COVID-19, Ripon's women's basketball team returned to the court with a convincing 91-53 victory at Lake Forest Saturday afternoon. The Red Hawks shot 51.4 percent (36-of-70) from the field, while holding the Foresters to 34 percent (16-of-47) in the win, which marked Head Coach Lauren Busalacchi's 100th career victory.

Ripon (1-0) never trailed in the game, which featured four ties. The Red Hawks dominated down low, outscoring Lake Forest in the paint by a 46-20 margin, while also outscoring them 13-0 in second-chance points. Ripon also forced 29 turnovers, which they turned into 35 points.

Thirteen Ripon players scored at least two points, led by a game-high 18 from Alison Leslie. Bonnie Jensen added 17 points, while Cydney Pittenger scored 11 in 13 minutes. Skyylar Brescia also chipped in with eight points and a game-high nine rebounds.

Lake Forest was led by Katie Neher's 11 points. Maggie Kersting added nine points, while Kelsey Burton scored eight, to go along with three rebounds.

Ripon will be in action again next Saturday when they'll play their first and only home game of the season. The Red Hawks will face these same Foresters that day at 1 p.m. in Weiske Gymnasium. That game can be seen live at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/ripon/, with LiveStats available at https://static.riponredhawks.com/custompages/LiveStats/WBBall/xlive.htm.