Following a recent pattern in their successes, the Ripon College women's basketball team one again posted a dominant third quarter to break open a 20-point lead and earn their 8th win in a row, beating Beloit College, 82-68.
 
Skyylar Brescia was huge for the Red Hawks in Tuesday night's game, registering a 29-point, 16-rebound double-double to pace all players in those categories. Bella Opelt had 13 points, connecting on all 8 of her free throw attempts, and Alison Leslie had 12 points to round out the three double-digit scorers for Ripon. Kiana Fall added 8 points and 6 rebounds before fouling out of the game, while Bonnie Jensen had an uncharacteristically off night shooting, going 1-for-6 from the floor, but Jensen still chipped in 5 points and grabbed 7 rebounds to make her presence known on the floor in the win.
 
Ripon led for most of the first quarter but could not create a ton of separation with just a max 4-point lead during the first 10 minutes of play. The Red Hawks expanded what was a 19-16 lead after the first quarter to 5 quickly to open the second quarter, but Beloit would stick around and trail Ripon just 25-23 with 3:18 until halftime. The Red Hawks, however, got it going on both ends of the floor and closed the half on a 10-4 run and went into the locker rooms with an 8 point lead.
 
The third quarter was where Ripon took control of the midweek contest. The Red Hawks scored the first 11 points of the third quarter, a run that spanned the first 3-plus minutes of the second half, and broke open a 46-27 lead. Beloit put an end to the run, but Ripon did not take their foot off the gas and pushed their lead to 23 points on two occasions before settling with a 22-point advantage heading into the final quarter.
 
The Red Hawks were able to cruise over the final 10 minutes, holding onto their double-digit edge comfortably until the last minute or so when Beloit trimmed it to 8 points with 1:29 to play. Ripon showed no panic in the final minutes, executing in the half court and from the free throw line to seal the 14-point victory.
 
Ripon will look to push their win streak to 9 games on Saturday, February 4th when they welcome Lawrence University to Doc Weiske '50 Memorial Gymnasium. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.