RIPON, Wisconsin – In a battle of two of the top teams in the Midwest Conference, the Ripon women's basketball program emerged with a hard-fought, 50-46 home win over Grinnell on Thursday night inside Weiske Gymnasium.
 
Though Grinnell (8-5, 3-2 MWC) whittled a 12-point, second-half deficit down to just three, Ripon (7-6, 4-0 MWC) held the Pioneers scoreless for the first 6 minutes and 46 seconds of the fourth quarter to remain unbeaten in MWC action.
 
STANDOUT HAWKS

• Senior forward Bonnie Jensen scored a team-high 10 points, hauling in 8 rebounds while dishing out 5 assists. She is just six points away from 1,000 career points.
• Junior forward Ella Ten Pas also scored a team-high 10 points, grabbing 6 rebounds and collecting 3 steals.
• Sophomore guard Natalie Rauwolf contributed 8 points and 9 rebounds with 2 steals.
• Junior guard Bella Opelt added 7 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals.
• Freshman guard Laney Havlovitz scored 5 points, swiped a career-high 5 steals and grabbed 4 rebounds.

PLAY-BY-PLAY
Ripon dominated the first quarter, scoring first and racing out to an 8-2 lead. After Grinnell found the basket again, the Red Hawks went on a 7-0 run to lead 15-4 after a jumper by Anna Fahrney. The Pioneers responded, however, scoring the final eight points of the quarter to only trail by three after the first 10 minutes.
 
After Grinnell cut its deficit to three in the early stages of the second quarter, a 6-0 spurt gave Ripon a 23-14 cushion with six minutes remaining in the half. Though the Pioneers would answer again and only trail by four, Ripon scored six of the final seven points of the quarter – including a pair of free throws by Opelt with one second remaining – to lead by nine at the break.
 
Grinnell made its move in the third quarter. Ten Pas connected on a layup to give the Red Hawks a 37-25 advantage, but the Pioneers chipped away and an 11-2 run trimmed Ripon's lead to just three at 39-36 with 2:29 left in the quarter. A Pioneer layup at the buzzer kept it a three-point Grinnell deficit, 41-38, with the final 10 minutes yet to play.
 
The Red Hawks left little doubt in the fourth quarter, locking down defensively and scoring the first six points of the final frame. Ripon led by 10 with three minutes left, but Grinnell made a last-ditch effort to climb back into the game. The Red Hawks did not score for the final 2 minutes and 33 seconds, but the Pioneers' 5-0 game-ending run was not enough as Ripon secured the victory.
 
KEY STATS

• Ripon shot better from the floor, going 22-of-57 (38.6%) while holding the Pioneers to 31.4% shooting from the floor (16-of-51).
• Grinnell had a significant advantage from the three-point line, making 7-of-21 attempts (33.3%) while limiting Ripon to just 1-of-10 shooting (10.0%) from behind the arc.
• The Red Hawks controlled the boards with 36 rebounds, surrendering just 28.
• Ripon scored 34 points in the paint, allowing just 16 by the Pioneers.
• Erin Lillis and Carolyn Pierce each had a game-high 11 points to lead Grinnell.

UP NEXT
Ripon turns its attention to a road contest at Illinois College on Saturday (January 6) at 3 p.m.
 
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