Highlights

Melissa Scherpenberg Interview

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio Dominican's women's basketball team turned 24 Malone turnovers into 29 points and scored 24 fastbreak points as the Panthers earned an 82-59 win in Alumni Hall on Saturday, ODU's sixth straight victory.

The six game win streak is ODU's longest in its Division II era (2010-11) as the Panthers improved to 14-4 (9-3 GLIAC). Malone fell to 5-12 (2-10 GLIAC).

ODU shot 53.7 percent from the floor (36-of-67), scored 46 points in the paint to Malone's 14, and had a 39-26 edge on the glass.

Junior Lauren Bates (Hilliard, Ohio) had a magnificent all-around performance, scoring a game-high 18 points to go along with eight rebounds, six assists and six steals. She made 9-of-14 shots from the field in her 35 minutes, and her six assists matched a career high.

Senior Melissa Scherpenberg (Cincinnati, Ohio) finished with 15 points and nine rebounds, making 7-of-9 from the floor. Junior Madi Rittinger (Dayton, Ohio) added 12 points and five rebounds and sophomore Megan Eyre (Fayetteville, Ohio) chipped in with 11 points, five assists and four steals in 22 minutes off the bench.

Malone had a strong start offensively, jumping to a 17-6 lead in the first six minutes of the game and hitting on seven of its first nine shots from the field. The Pioneers remained in front by as much as seven, 25-18, two minutes into the second period before the Panthers took control.

A layup by Rittinger, a jumper from Eyre, and four straight fastbreak layups gave the Panthers their first lead at 26-25 midway through the period.

Bates scored on another fastbreak layup, and one more layup in transition by Scherpenberg with a foul led to a three-point play, capping a spurt of 13 unanswered points as the Panthers went up 31-25.

After a Malone layup, Eyre sank a jumper and a triple from the wing, and senior Rachael Torey (Sterling Heights, Mich.) beat the halftime buzzer with a corner three to put ODU in front 39-27 at intermission.

Overall, it was a 21-2 run to close the half, as the Panthers turned 17 Malone turnovers into 21 points in the opening half. ODU also had an 18-0 edge in fastbreak points and a 24-8 cushion in points in the paint.

The Panthers bumped their lead to 17 in the third quarter (46-29) on a triple by junior Kayla Cook (Westerville, Ohio), but Malone was able to draw within eight on a pair of occasions, including 59-51 in the final minute of the period.

However, ODU scored the next eight points and led by as much as 25 in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Pioneers 23-8 in the period.

The Panthers matched a season high with their 17 steals, and ODU has now won the rebounding battle in eight straight games. The Panthers also shot better than 50 percent from the field for the fifth time this season.

Ohio Dominican hits the road to take on Ashland at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. The Eagles are 18-0 and ranked No. 4 in the nation.

Contact: Scott Miles
miless@ohiodominican.edu