(BETHANY, W.Va.) – The 10th-ranked Thomas More College women's basketball team used a good shooting day to defeat Bethany College, 89-46, today (Saturday, December 2, 2017) in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) game at Hummel Field House in Bethany, West Virginia.
With the win, the Saints improve to 6-1 overall and 3-0 in the PAC. With the loss, the Bison fall to 1-5 overall and 1-1 in the PAC.
Thomas More led 19-11 after one quarter and then caught fire as it shot 75 percent (12-of-16) from the field in the second quarter, including 77.8 percent (seven-of-nine) from behind the three-point to increase the lead to 52-29 at halftime. In the third and fourth quarters, the Saints out-scored Bethany by a combined margin of 37-17 to roll to the 89-46 victory.
For the game, Thomas More shot 54.5 percent (30-28of-55) from the field, including 53.6 percent (15-of-28) from three-point range. The Saints had a 30-16 advantage on points in the paint, 30-9 advantage in points off turnovers and the Saints' bench out-scored the Bison's 33-19.
Senior guard Abby Owings (Independence, Ky./Simon Kenton) led all scorers with 21 points. She was joined in double-figure scoring by junior guard Madison Temple (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) with 15 points, first-year guard Briana McNutt (Maysville, Ky./Mason County) with 12 and sophomore guard Taylor Jolly (Alexandria, Ky./Campbell County) with 11. Sophomore forward Emily Shultz (Melbourne, Ky./Bishop Brossart) led the team on the boards with six rebounds, while junior forward Shelby Rupp (Milan, Ind./Batesville) and first-year guard Tori Gilman (Milford, Ohio/Milford) each pulled down five rebounds. Temple led the team in assists and blocks with six assists and three blocks.
The Saints return to action on Tuesday (November 4) when they travel to Pikeville, Kentucky to play NAIA-member the University of Pikeville. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Eastern Kentucky Expo Center.