RIVER FOREST, Ill. – In the past three games, the Edgewood College women's basketball team had been averaging 19.7 turnovers and lost all three contests. The Eagles stepped up their fundamentals against Dominican University on Saturday, only turning the ball over a season-low 12 times and snapping that losing streak. WithMariah Hill's career-high nine assists, Edgewood College set a season-high 1.42 assist-to-turnover ratio and received at least a point from everyone who played in their 75-58 victory over the Stars at Igini Sports Forum.
The Eagles (10-11, 9-5 NAC) used stingy defense in the first half, forcing 12 turnovers and only allowing the Stars to shoot 18.2 percent from the three-point arc. Alison Tobin put cashed in the first four points for the Eagles and Dominican (0-20, 0-12 NAC) kept the game close for the first eight minutes of play, but then Edgewood College began to heat up. Leading 12-11, the Eagles ripped off seven consecutive which started a 14-2 run over the next six minutes. Dominican finally knocked down a couple of shots to tighten up the deficit, but a triple by Rachel Pope and another layup by Tobin gave the Eagles a 35-24 lead at the break. Hill did a great job finding the open Eagle as she assisted five different Edgewood College players in the half. Edgewood College used 20 points in the paint and 10 points off Stars' turnovers to get out to the double-digit lead.
The Stars began the second half with a basket to cut the Eagles' lead to nine, but that was as close as Dominican would get. Holding a 12-point lead with 14:07 remaining, Kelsey Collins poured in all of her 11 points over the next two minutes, fueling a 15-2 run and just like that Edgewood College built a 25-point advantage. It was smooth sailing from there on out as the Stars tried to climb back into the game with 10 three-point attempts, but the Eagles stood their ground and only allowed one triple to be converted. Dominican actually outscored Edgewood College 16-14 in the paint after the break, but the Eagles defense from distance was enough to keep a sizeable lead throughout the half.
Edgewood College built their streak to 10-0 this season when scoring 60 or more points. The Eagles converted 37.3 percent of their baskets and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. Edgewood College also knocked down 72.2 percent (13-for-18) of their shots from the charity stripe.
Tobin led Edgewood College with 12 points and seven boards, but Collins was impressive from three-point range hitting three of her four attempts. Collins' 11 points matched a season-high and was the first time she hit double figures since the first game of the season. After her nine assist night, Hill now has 14 consecutive contests with at least one helper.
Even after the win, Edgewood College remains half a game out of the third spot in the Northern Athletics Conference's North Division with four to play. The Eagles will host MSOE next Wednesday as they try to climb in the standings. Live video and live stats will be available with links found on EdgewoodCollegeEagles.com.