RIPON, Wisconsin – The Ripon women's basketball program has returned to a familiar place and is back on top of the Midwest Conference yet again.
The Red Hawks defeated Knox 84-70 on Saturday afternoon in front of a packed Weiske Gymnasium crowd to win the Midwest Conference Tournament and book a return trip to next week's NCAA Tournament.
Ripon (19-8) dropped a three-point heartbreaker to Knox (19-8) in last season's MWC Tournament final, but would not be denied this season. The Red Hawks have now won seven Midwest Conference Tournament championships and three under current head coach
Lauren Busalacchi. Additionally, 2023-24 marks the fourth time in program history that Ripon has won both the league regular season and tournament crowns.
Bonnie Jensen picked an opportune time for a career game. The senior had a career-high 25 points while
Ella Ten Pas added 22. Ten Pas also had 8 rebounds while her eighth gave her the school record for single-season rebounds. The previous mark of 241 was set in both 2005-06 and 1995-96 by Karalyn Dehn and Heather Schneider, respectively.
STANDOUT HAWKS
- Senior forward Bonnie Jensen scored the aforementioned career-high 25 points on 9-of-12 shooting. She also had 7 rebounds and 3 assists.
- Junior forward Ella Ten Pas netted 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting and made all six free-throw attempts. She added 8 rebounds and 4 assists.
- Freshman guard Laney Havlovitz scored in double figures for the third consecutive game, tallying 11 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
- Sophomore guard Natalie Rauwolf contributed 7 points and 7 boards.
PLAY-BY-PLAY
Both teams were in a groove offensively to start the game as the lead changed hands multiple times in the opening minutes. After Knox cut its deficit to 17-16, six straight points for Ripon gave the hosts a 23-16 advantage with under 90 seconds to go in the first half. Jensen ended the first-quarter scoring with a jumper and Ripon was up 25-18 after the first 10 minutes.
Ripon imposed its well in the second quarter, setting the tone for the rest of the afternoon. The Red Hawks scored the first six points of the quarter, pushing their lead to double digits. After the Prairie Fire came within nine at 35-26, Ripon ended the half on an 11-0 run to lead by 20 at intermission. Knox went scoreless for the final 4:46 of the stanza and only scored eight points in the second quarter.
The Red Hawks' lead grew to as many as 22 in the third stanza as Ten Pas scored the first two points of the half at the free throw line, giving Ripon a 48-26 lead. Sarina Dacio connected on a triple to pull the Prairie Fire within 15 with 5:13 left, but Ripon responded to keep Knox at an arm's-length away. Ripon scored four of the final six points in the third and led by 16 with 10 minutes to go.
Ripon continued to control the fourth quarter, holding a lead of at least 14 for the rest of the game. Knox endured multiple scoring droughts of more than two minutes as Jensen scored 10 consecutive points for the Red Hawks in the middle stages of the quarter. The Prairie Fire cut a 19-point deficit down to 14, but it was not enough as Ripon won the Midwest Conference Tournament for the third time in the last five full seasons.
KEY STATS
- Ripon shot a blistering 53.3% from the field (32-of-60), while Knox was just 25-of-67 for a 37.3% clip. In the critical second quarter, the Prairie Fire shot 4-of-20 (20.0%) from the field.
- The Red Hawks made 19-of-24 free throws, while Knox only shot 15 and made 10.
- Ripon committed a season-low 10 turnovers and forced 9.
- The Red Hawks dominated the painted area, scoring 52 points down low, while only allowing 22.
- Bria Medina led Knox with 23 points.
UP NEXT
Ripon's NCAA Tournament destination and opponent will be announced during the selection show on Monday (February 26) at 1:30 p.m. The show will be streamed live on NCAA.com.
FOLLOW
Follow Ripon College Red Hawks Athletics on Facebook and @RiponRedHawks on Twitter for immediate updates, results and more. Go to riponredhawks.com for all information, releases and schedules.
