COLUMBUS, Ohio --- Sixteen unanswered points by Ohio Dominican's women's basketball team sparked the Panthers to a 76-64 win Saturday over Malone in GLIAC play.

Malone had cut a 41-30 halftime deficit to 45-43 with 14:41 left, but the Panthers held the Pioneers scoreless for a seven minute stretch as the Panthers ripped off the 16-0 run.

ODU, which shot 48.3 percent (28-of-58) and tied a season low with nine turnovers, improved to 8-16 (5-13 GLIAC). The Panthers tied a season-best with 22 assists as well.

The Panthers answered quickly after Malone started the second half on the 13-4 run. Freshman Darian Rose (Fort Loramie, Ohio) scored a layup in transition, then found sophomore Kayla Cook (Westerville, Ohio) inside for another layup.

Senior Kacee Hockenberry (Haviland, Ohio) drilled a long jumper and Cook buried another jumper from the top of the key to push the lead back to 10, 53-43. Hockenberry connected with junior Melissa Scherpenberg (Cincinnati, Ohio) on another long jumper, sophomore Madi Rittinger (Dayton, Ohio) found Scherpenberg for a fastbreak layup, and sophomore Lauren Bates (Hilliard, Ohio) hit a jumper from the right wing to cap the run and give the Panthers a 61-43 lead with 7:40 to play.

Malone would draw no closer than 11 points in the final minute of the game.

Senior Micaela Liddane (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.) set a career high with nine assists. Hockenberry paced the Panthers with 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting, Bates finished with 15 points and six rebounds, and sophomore Jackie Oestreich (Brighton, Mich.) set a career high with 14 points to go along with seven rebounds.

Rittinger and Scherpenberg also scored eight points apiece for the Panthers, who made 27-of47 shots inside the three point line (57.4 percent).

ODU never trailed in the game. Oestreich scored the first six points of the game and a Bates layup after a dish from Oestreich made it 8-0 four minutes into the game, forcing a Pioneer timeout.

The Panthers, who hit 10 of their first 18 shots, took a 24-15 lead after Liddane lobbed a pass inside to Scherpenberg for a layup, and later in the half Hockenberry knocked down ODU's lone three pointer of the game to make it 31-19, the largest lead of the frame for ODU.

The Panthers had a 30-16 edge in points in the paint and scored 15 points off of 10 Malone turnovers. ODU also had a 12-4 advantage in fastbreak points.

Ohio Dominican returns to action at a 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Ashland.

Contact: Scott Miles
miless@ohiodominican.edu