RIPON, Wisconsin – The Ripon women's basketball program continues to go where no program in the Midwest Conference has ever gone.
 
By virtue of the Red Hawks resounding 87-35 victory over Monmouth on Saturday afternoon inside Weiske Gymnasium, Ripon has now set a new league record with its seventh consecutive regular season title. St. Norbert (1984-89) is the only team to match the Red Hawks' run of six consecutive conference crowns.
 
With a win on Wednesday at Lake Forest, Ripon (19-4, 13-1 MWC) will win its second-straight outright Midwest Conference title and clinch hosting duties for the Midwest Conference Tournament for the seventh season in a row.
 
STANDOUT HAWKS

• Freshman guard Halle Van Horn scored a game-high 16 points, going a perfect 5-of-5 from the floor, 3-of-3 from deep and 3-of-3 from the free throw line. She also had five rebounds, two assists and two blocks.
• Sophomore guard Laney Havlovitz chipped in 15 points, four rebounds, four assists and five steals.
• Senior guard Vanessa Solano added 11 points off the bench.
• Senior forward Ella Ten Pas contributed nine points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals.

PLAY-BY-PLAY
Monmouth (5-18, 2-12 MWC) made things interesting early, holding Ripon to just one basket in the first four and a half minutes. With the score tied at four, the Red Hawks put the hammer down – Ripon ended the stanza on an 11-0 run, holding the Scots scoreless for the final 5:26 in taking a 15-4 lead into the second quarter.
 
Ripon continued to score in bunches in the second quarter, opening the frame on a 5-0 spurt before Monmouth finally got back on the scoreboard. In a frame where Ripon scored 32 of the 39 points, a 7-0 run put the hosts up 27-6, and a 20-2 quarter-ending spurt gave the Red Hawks a 47-11 halftime cushion.
 
Monmouth strung together points at the onset of the third quarter, though the lead never got smaller than 36. Nursing a 55-18 lead, Ripon scored the next 12 points to go in front by 49 (67-18) with 3:54 left in the stanza. Monmouth was held to just one made field goal in the final six and a half minutes of the quarter as Ripon led 76-25 with 10 minutes remaining.
 
With the outcome largely in hand, Ripon continued to put points on the board and led by as many as 54. The Scots last points came at the 3:20 mark, and Ripon scored the final four points of the game to secure the win.
 
KEY STATS

• Ripon shot an even 34-of-68 from the floor (50.0%) while holding Monmouth to 11-of-40 success from the field (27.5%).
• The Red Hawks made nine three-pointers compared to Monmouth's one.
• Ripon scored 48 paint points, 37 points off turnovers, 18 second-chance points, 21 fast break points and 41 bench points.
• The Red Hawks turned the Scots over 29 times, a season-high for Ripon.
• Ashley Jones led Monmouth with 10 points.

UP NEXT
Ripon next heads on the road for the final time in the regular season, visiting Lake Forest at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, February 19.
 
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