| Raenett Hughes had another big game against a ranked opponent for the streaking Texas-Dallas Comets. Texas-Dallas athletics file photo |
Texas-Dallas caught fire in the second half at No. 5 Mary Hardin-Baylor and No. 4 Hope closed out Trine late in the fourth quarter of Saturday's marquee match-ups. Elsewhere No. 6 Amherst roughed up No. 24 Widener and No. 11 UW-La Crosse beat UW-Oshkosh.
In a battle of last season's ASC Division champions, Texas-Dallas shot 61 percent in the fourth quarter and blew past Mary Hardin-Baylor, 69-55. Victoria Pena started a 13-0 third quarter run with a jumper and ended it with a three-pointer that gave the Comets a 41-32 lead. Kelly Skinner's jumper extended Texas-Dallas' lead to double-digits early in the fourth quarter and it stayed that way the rest of the game.
Raenett Hughes scored 28 points in 33 minutes for Texas-Dallas (9-3, 3-0 ASC). She has scored 20-plus points in all four of the Comets' games against ranked opponents this season. Pena added a double-double (13 points, 10 rebounds) for the Comets who have won eight straight since starting the season 1-3. Allaira Jones had 11 points for the Crusaders (9-3, 2-1 ASC) who have dropped two straight.
Is it too early to declare Hope champions of the MIAA? Probably, but the fourth-ranked Flying Dutch took control of the conference race with a 58-51 at last year's champion Trine. After Trine's Katy Steers tied the game at 51 with two free throws and 2:27 to play, Hope's Sydney Muller answered with a three to give the Flying Dutch the lead. Hope finished the game on a 7-0 run while Trine went 0-for-3 with a turnover. The Flying Dutch (13-0, 4-0 MIAA) already have wins over likely contenders Calvin, Albion and Trine.
| Albright (13-0) | W 74-66 vs. Stevenson |
| Austin (11-0) | W 88-57 at JWU-Denver |
| Bethel (11-0) | W 78-62 vs. St. Mary's |
| Bowdoin (11-0) | Idle |
| Hope (13-0) | |
| Smith (12-0) | Idle |
| Tufts (11-0) | |
| Williams (11-0) | W 56-45 at Skidmore |
The number of undefeated Division III women's teams shrunk from 10 to eight on Saturday.
No. 6 Amherst shot 54 percent and blew away No. 24 Widener, 87-48. The Mammoths outscored the Pride 26-10 in the first quarter and led comfortably the rest of the way. Playing in front of several friends and family, Hannah Fox tallied 25 points and 12 rebounds for Amherst (9-1). The Mammoths play Stevens tomorrow to cap a stretch in which they play six games in four states in nine days.
Wisconsin Lutheran led Edgewood wire-to-wire and held the previously-unbeaten Eagles to 0-for-9 shooting from three in a 58-49 home win for the Warriors. Wisconsin Lutheran's starters scored all 58 points, led by Kelly Tramburg (20 points) and Jenna Mace (19).
The two undefeated NESCAC teams in action on Saturday stayed that way. No. 1 Tufts upped its record to 11-0 with a 73-43 rout of Mass.-Dartmouth and Williams got 19 points from reserve Morgan Dauk in a 56-45 win at Skidmore. No. 3 Bowdoin, which is also undefeated, was idle.
Cabrini picked up a win that should come in handy when at-large bids are awarded, as the Cavaliers defeated No. 10 DeSales, 69-62. The Cavaliers will need an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament since their conference does not yet have an automatic bid. Kate Lannon and Ashley Tutzauer combined for 41 points for Cabrini (8-4), which won despite shooting 22 percent in the second half.
No. 11 UW-La Crosse opened WIAC play with a 71-57 home victory over defending champion UW-Oshkosh. The Eagles starters shot a combined 8-for-15 from three, led by Dani Craig who scored 20 points. Leah Porath scored 19 points for Oshkosh, but the rest of the Titans' starters scored just 16 combined. No. 19 UW-Whitewater shook off an eight-point first quarter and cruised past UW-Eau Claire, 67-41.
Outside the Top 25, Ursinus nearly pulled off an upset of Centennial Conference leader Gettysburg before falling short, 64-61. Trailing 62-58 with eight seconds left, Francesca Bogiatzis scored a three-point play for the Bears. They immediately fouled Ashley Gehrin who sank two free throws, securing the win. Gehrin scored 13 points, mostly from the foul line where she went 9 for 10.