DEFIANCE, Ohio—The Transylvania University women's basketball remained undefeated in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play with a 70-62 win over the Defiance College Yellow Jackets on Saturday. With the win, the Pioneers' winning streak was extended to a program-best 14 straight wins.
Transy opened the game on an 18-4 run in the opening eight minutes, capped by a three-pointer from sophomore guard Jordin Fender at the 12:21 mark. The Pioneer offense would jumpstart once again just minutes later when senior guard Nicole Coffman made a jumper with 10:53 left to play in the game, making the score 20-6.
After several Defiance turnovers and an offensive surge from Transylvania, the Pioneers saw their lead expand to 32-8 after 13 minutes of play. A basket by junior forward Chelsea Pharris finished off another extended Transy, this one 14-4 and giving the team a commanding lead.
The Defiance offense would heat up over the closing seven minutes in the first half, but the Pioneers were able to limit the damage and took a 38-19 lead into the locker room. Coffman's 13 points led a Transylvania offense that shot 43 percent (15-35) from the field.
The Pioneers' edge in the first half came on the glass, as the team outrebounded the Yellow Jackets 26-9 in the opening period. Transylvania also held Defiance to an abysmal 26 percent (7-27) shooting from the floor, including 12 percent (2-17) from behind the arc.
In the second half, the rebounding margin would become less wide and the Yellow Jackets' offense fired up as they made an attempt to cut into the 19-point halftime margin.
The Jackets shot 59 percent (17-29) in the closing period, led by 14 points from guard Megan Zachrich. However, it was too little too late as the Pioneers' lead proved too much to overcome. Despite outscoring Transylvania 43-32 in the second half, Transy was able to keep them at bay over the closing minutes.
After a 10-1 run from Defiance brought the score to 65-60 at the 1:37 mark, Transylvania hunkered down and extended their lead back to eight when junior guard Katelyn Smith made a layup and converted the free throw after being fouled with 1:09 to play.
After allowing the margin to get to only five with a minute and a half to play, the Pioneer defense held Defiance scoreless over the final 1:34 until a jump shot from the Jackets made its way into the basket with three seconds left.
Coffman and Smith led the way for the Pioneers on offense, each scoring 20 points. Smith added four rebounds and one steal while Coffman also recorded six boards, two assists and four steals to accompany her scoring. Pharris gave Transylvania a boost on the boards as she pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.
With the win, the No. 15 ranked Pioneers move to 22-1 on the season with an unblemished 16-0 mark in HCAC play. Transy will travel to Hanover on Feb. 18 before returning home next Saturday, Feb. 21 for their final regular season game and senior day against Bluffton University.