GREENCASTLE, Indiana – The Ripon women's basketball program hung tough with the #12 team in the country for a full 40 minutes, but the Red Hawks fell to Hope 65-54 on Friday night inside Neal Fieldhouse in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
After Ripon (19-9) led 9-8 late in the first quarter, Hope (25-3) ended the first frame and started the second on an 11-0 run to take the lead for good, though Ripon would not go down without a fight. The Red Hawks cut their deficit to as little as seven in the fourth quarter before succumbing to the perennial power Flying Dutch.
 
Despite the loss, Ripon had another banner season in 2023-24. The Red Hawks won the Midwest Conference regular-season title for the sixth-consecutive full season (and ninth overall), tying a Midwest Conference record, and had a winning season for the eighth-straight campaign. Two players were named All-Midwest Conference, while head coach Lauren Busalacchi and her staff were named the MWC Coaching Staff of the Year for the fifth consecutive season.
 
STANDOUT HAWKS

• Sophomore guard Natalie Rauwolf scored a team-high 13 points – 10 in the second half – on 5-of-10 shooting and 3-of-5 from deep. She also added 6 rebounds.
• Junior guard Bella Opelt netted 11 points and 2 steals on 5-of-10 shooting.
• Junior guard Anna Fahrney scored 9 points with 4 boards.
• Senior forward Bonnie Jensen wrapped up her incredible career in a Ripon uniform with 8 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the floor, chipping in 4 rebounds.
• Freshman guard Laney Havlovitz contributed 6 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.

PLAY-BY-PLAY
Ripon got off to a good start, scoring five of the first seven points as Hope opened 1-5 from the field. However, the Flying Dutch answered with the next six to take an 8-5 advantage before Opelt and Havlovitz responded to retake the lead. Hope scored the last eight points of the quarter and led 16-9 after the first 10 minutes.
 
The Flying Dutch continued their run in the second, opening up a double-digit lead before Ripon countered with six consecutive points, holding Hope scoreless for nearly three minutes. The Red Hawks used a 7-0 run deep into the half to draw within one, but four Hope triples in the quarter continually stemmed the tide and the Flying Dutch led 33-28 at the break.
 
There was a lid on the basket to start the second half as neither team scored for the first two-plus minutes until Hope converted an old-fashioned, three-point play. Opelt ended the Ripon drought nearly three minutes into the half but six was the closest Ripon got in the frame. Hope went on a 5-0 spurt in the quarter to again seize a double-digit lead at 43-32 and the final two minutes were a flurry of scoring – however, a nine-point Red Hawk deficit over the final 1:40 turned into a 13-point deficit as Hope led 50-37 with the fourth quarter remaining.
 
Rauwolf and Opelt sparked Ripon with baskets to open the quarter as the Red Hawks closed to single digits, 52-45, with 7:14 to go. The teams traded baskets from there as Hope's lead teetered between seven and 13 points for the majority of the quarter. The Flying Dutch made timely buckets down the stretch, not allowing Ripon to get within single digits for the final 7:14. Hope made it a 12-point game with 1:56 to go and salted the final moments away.
 
KEY STATS

• Both teams shot similarly from the field – Ripon was 21-of-51 (41.2%) and Hope was 25-of-59 (42.4%).
• Ripon shot a season-high 55.6% from deep (5-9), though Hope – one of the top three-point shooting teams in the country – made nine triples (9-of-26, 34.6%).
• The Red Hawks committed 21 turnovers but turned the Flying Dutch over 15 times.
• Hope outscored Ripon 17-4 in second-chance points.
• Jada Garner and Olivia Bellows each led Hope with 15 points.

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