LA CROSSE, Wisconsin – The Ripon women's basketball program used a strong second half to earn an 82-67 comeback road win at UW-La Crosse on Saturday night inside Mitchell Hall.
 
After trailing by nine at halftime, Ripon (1-1) outscored La Crosse (2-2) by 24 in the final 20 minutes to claim its first win of the 2023-24 campaign.
 
STANDOUT HAWKS

• Senior forward Bonnie Jensen had a team-high 20 points on 8 of 12 shooting. She added 7 rebounds, 2 blocks and 1 assist.
• Junior forward Ella Ten Pas recorded her first double-double in a Ripon uniform with 17 points and 11 rebounds. She made 7 of 9 free throws.
• Freshman guard Laney Havlovitz was also in double-figures, tallying 13 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists in 35 minutes.
• Sophomore guard Natalie Rauwolf scored 9 points and chipped in 3 boards.
• Junior guard/forward Bree Miller had a similar stat line, posting 9 points and 3 rebounds on 50% shooting (3-6).

PLAY-BY-PLAY
It was a defensive struggle from the onset, as La Crosse scored the first four points of the contest. Ripon was on the board over two minutes into the game thanks to a bucket by Jensen. After UWL scored the next basket, Ripon went on a 10-0 run to take a 12-6 lead. The Red Hawks took an 18-14 lead into the second quarter after the teams combined for six points in the final minute of the frame.
 
After Havlovitz buried a three to give Ripon a 23-20 advantage, the Eagles responded with a 10-0 run, holding Ripon scoreless for nearly three minutes midway through the second quarter. La Crosse extended its lead to nine at halftime after limiting Ripon to 4 of 9 shooting in the second quarter. Over the same stretch, the Eagles shot 64.7 percent (11 of 17).
 
Ripon made a charge after halftime, trimming a nine-point deficit to one after an 8-0 run midway through the third quarter. Bella Opelt canned a three to give Ripon a 48-46 lead with 4:33 remaining in the quarter, but La Crosse answered and the teams went back and forth from there. Tied at 51, the Eagles went on a 5-2 spurt the final 2:53 of the quarter to hold a three-point advantage heading into the fourth.
 
The fourth quarter was all Ripon. The first five points of the frame were scored by Ripon, and a critical 7-0 run after La Crosse tied it at 58 proved to be the difference. The Red Hawks held their biggest lead at the most important juncture of the game, leading by 12 with 3:34 remaining in the game after a free throw by Rauwolf. La Crosse never got closer than eight the rest of the way, as the Eagles finished the game 1 for their last 15 field goals, and 1 for their last 8 three-pointers.
 
KEY STATS

• Ripon shot the ball much better than La Crosse (52.9% to 36.8%).
• The Eagles shot just 11.8% from the field in the final quarter (2-17) while Ripon was an efficient 53.3% (8-15).
• The Red Hawks had 42 points in the paint compared to La Crosse's 28.
• Ripon got twice as many bench points as the Eagles (16-8).
• Kailee Meeker had 18 first half points for La Crosse and finished with a game-high 32.

UP NEXT
Ripon preps for its home opener on Tuesday (November 21) as the Red Hawks welcome in unbeaten Wheaton College for a 5:30 p.m. tip inside Weiske Gymnasium.
 
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