RIPON, Wisconsin – The most dominant season in the history of Ripon women's basketball will last at least one more week.
 
The Red Hawks defeated Grinnell 67-47 on Saturday afternoon inside Weiske Gymnasium to win their second consecutive Midwest Conference Tournament crown, and their third in the last four seasons.
 
Ripon has now won eight Midwest Conference Tournament championships and four under current head coach Lauren Busalacchi. Additionally, 2024-25 marks the fifth time in program history that Ripon has won both the league regular season and tournament crowns.
 
The Red Hawks have continued to break records in their most successful season ever – the 15 consecutive home wins and 23 wins in a season are also school records.
 
STANDOUT HAWKS

• Senior forward Ella Ten Pas scored a game-high 26 points, adding seven rebounds and five blocks. She was 11-of-16 from the floor.
• Sophomore guard Laney Havlovitz added 11 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals.
• Freshman guard Karsyn Nelson scored 11 points with two rebounds.
• Freshman guard Halle Van Horn contributed nine points, eight rebounds and two blocks.

PLAY-BY-PLAY
Ripon (23-4) started strong in the opening minutes – after Grinnell (19-8) evened the score at two apiece, Ripon scored the next six to pull in front for good. The Pioneers trimmed their deficit to two with under four minutes left in the frame, but the Red Hawks ended the quarter on a 14-0 run to lead 24-8 after 10 minutes.
 
The streak continued in the second – Ripon scored the first four points of the frame, holding Grinnell without a basket for over three minutes. Grinnell's first field goal of the period finally came at the 4:52 mark after Ripon had opened up a 31-10 lead. Ripon scored the final four points of the half – holding Grinnell scoreless for the last 3:47 – to take a 35-15 lead into half.
The Pioneers kept things interesting at the onset of the third, scoring the first seven points while Ripon couldn't break the seal on the basket until the 6:13 mark. Two free throws by the opposition brough Grinnell within 43-32 at the 2:41 mark, but free throws by Van Horn and a layup by Havlovitz opened up a 16-point cushion. Nelson split a pair of free throws with under 10 seconds left and Ripon led 51-36 after three.
 
Ripon's lead grew to 24 on multiple occasions in the fourth as Grinnell was unable to close the gap. The Red Hawks' smallest lead of the frame was 15, and the Pioneers only made two field goals in the first six and a half minutes. Grinnell scored seven of the final nine points in the game, but it was too little too late as Ripon coasted to another 20-point victory.
 
KEY STATS

• Ripon shot 44.8% from the floor (26-of-58) and was 13-of-17 from the free throw line (76.5%).
• Grinnell was just 14-of-50 from the floor (28.0%) and 6-of-18 from three-point range (33.3%).
• The Red Hawks forced 17 turnovers, turning that into 24 points.
• Ripon had a 46-14 edge in paint points, and a 13-3 advantage in fastbreak points.
• Nikki Ware led Grinnell with 19 points.

UP NEXT
Ripon's NCAA Tournament destination and opponent will be announced during the selection show on Monday (March 3) at 1:30 p.m. The show will be streamed live on NCAA.com.
 
FOLLOW
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