BLUFFTON, Ohio—The 19th ranked Transylvania University women's basketball team dominated the paint and generated 23 points off turnovers, picking up their sixth straight win with an 87-72 win over Bluffton University Saturday at the Sommer Center.
The Pioneers controlled the inside game with 56 points in the paint to only 28 by Bluffton. Transylvania pulled down 15 defensive rebounds in the second half, as the Pioneers improved to 14-1 on the season and a flawless 8-0 in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play.
Transylvania opened the second half with a 12-5 run to extend its lead to 47-36, before building a 22-point second half lead. Senior Alex McKenzie found senior Nicole Coffman for an opening possession basket to start the second half. Fellow senior Kayla Dobson pulled down one of her game game-high 10 rebounds that led to basket from sophomore Jordin Fender to put the Pioneers up eight, 39-31, as the Pioneers found their groove on their way to their sixth straight win.
The potent Transylvania offense shot an efficient 20-of-35 from the floor in the second half to help to the Beavers, as nine Pioneers logged points in the win.
The Beavers' Taylor Whitaker struck first knocking down a three-point bucket on their opening possession to take a 3-0 lead just 17 seconds into the game. The Pioneers, however, responded quickly as Fender answered with back-to-back baskets to put Transylvania in front, 4-3.
The two teams traded leads four times over the next two minutes, as each answered scores from the other. Dobson pulled down a defensive rebound following a miss from Bluffton's Rachel Beining as junior Katelyn Smith got her first two of 14 first-half points putting the visiting Pioneers back on top, 8-7 with 16:09 left in the first half.
Whitaker sparked a 7-0 run for the Beavers giving them their largest lead of the half with a 14-8 lead. Senior Elizabeth Thomas grabbed a board off a Bluffton miss, as Fender found junior Chelsea Pharris for the jumper ending the scoring drought. Smith added jumpers on the following possessions to help close in on the Bluffton lead.
Another bucket from Smith tied it up at 21 apiece near the midway point of the first half, before Dobson gave the Pioneers the lead again at 23-21. Transylvania extended its lead to 35-25 with 3:21 left before the break, but the Beavers narrowed the lead to 35-31 at the half.
Smith led the offensive attack for the Pioneers with 27 points, as Coffman, McKenzie and Fender also hit double-digits in scoring.
The Pioneers will travel to Franklin College Wednesday for another HCAC contest. Wednesday's game is set for 7:30 p.m.