December 9, 2015
By: Ryan Schadewald, sports information assistant
RICHMOND, Ind. - The Bluffton University women's basketball team continues to rewrite the history books as the Beavers improved to a school-record 6-0 to start the season with their 82-54 road win at Earlham College on Wednesday, Dec. 9. The victory also equals the record for consecutive wins in a single season (1981-82) with six. The Beavers improved their mark to 2-0 in the HCAC, while the Quakers fell to 1-5 and 0-2 in the conference.
The first quarter was a low scoring one with Bluffton taking a 13-10 lead, paced by six markers from RACHEL BEINING (Ottoville). The visitors opened it up in the second stanza as the Beavers scored nine of the first 13 points, pushing the lead to double digits at 24-14, including five straight from Beining to end the spurt. The Beaver run continued after an Earlham bucket with a triple by KAYCEE ROWE (Harrod/Allen East) and two freebies from MACEY SHEERER (Bucyrus), giving Bluffton its largest lead of the half (30-16) at the 3:58 mark. Earlham trimmed the deficit as low as eight, but Bluffton converted a pair of free throws to make it 32-22 at the half.
The Beavers went up by 14 on baskets from TAYLOR KNIGHT(Perrysburg) and Sheerer to open the third. After Earlham trimmed it to eight again, the visitors went on another 11-2 spurt, sparked by a layup from Rowe, and included scores from four different Beavers to make it 49-32 at the 3:52 mark. Bluffton opened a 19-point spread on a deuce by JESSICA BOGGAN (Cincinnati/Princeton) before the home team rattled off six straight to make it 56-43 after three quarters.
The fourth quarter was all Beavers as they started on a 14-0 spurt in the opening 4:04. The run was ignited by a Rowe bucket and a Whitaker hoop-and-harm. Rowe hit another deuce before KAITLYN PENNEKAMP(Hamilton/Ross) grabbed the board and Sheerer got the old fashioned three-point-play. The run ended with a jumper from Beining to make it a 70-43 game with 5:56 remaining. Bluffton got the lead to 30 late on a conventional three-point play by ABIGAIL O'DONNELL (Arcanum) before an Earlham bucket made it an 82-54 final tally.
The Beavers shot well in the contest, hitting 46.9 percent (30-of-64) despite struggling from beyond the arc (25 percent on 3-of-12). Earlham shot just 20-of-57 (35.1 percent) from the floor. The Beavers handled the Quakers on the boards, 42-32, and finished with five less turnovers (18-13) than the home team.
Bluffton was led by Rachel Beining as she went for a career high with 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Beining also wrecked the stat sheet with nine boards to go along with four assists and four blocks. Kaycee Rowe chipped in with 15 markers, eight boards and four dimes. Macey Sheerer and TAYLOR WHITAKER (Mansfield/Lexington) each added 11 points and four boards. Kaitlyn Pennekamp and Abigail O'Donnell both finished with seven points off the bench, while O'Donnell pulled down three boards and her seven points were a career best in just six minutes of action.
The Beavers return home on Saturday, Dec. 12, when they put their unbeaten mark on the line as they take on the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Fightin' Engineers in the opener of a doubleheader at the Sommer Center. The women's game is set to tip at 1 p.m. Come support your Beavers!
-BEAVERS-