The Oglethorpe women's basketball team used an outstanding defensive performance and a solid offensive effort to knock off the Centre Colonels 53-43 Friday evening in Danville, Kentucky. The Stormy Petrels held Centre under 40 percent from the field and under 30 percent from 3-point range while shooting 47.4 percent from the field themselves, improving to 18-5 overall and 9-3 in SAA play as a result. The win also maintained the Petrels alone in second place in the league standings.

Oglethorpe never trailed in the game and was able to keep Centre at arm's length for the majority of the 40 minutes. They led by as many as six in the first quarter and held a 12-7 advantage after 10 minutes. The visitors extended their lead to seven points midway through the second quarter, building a 21-14 advantage with just under 4:40 left in the opening half. They pushed their advantage to 23-14 with 2:03 left. A Colonel 3-pointer late in the period made it a six-point game at the break.

Centre cut the Oglethorpe lead to two midway through the third quarter, outscoring the Petrels 9-5 over the opening five minutes of the period to make it 28-26. Oglethorpe quickly fought back with five straight points and pushed their advantage back out to 33-26 with 3:25 remaining in the third. They led 37-31 headed to the fourth.

The Colonels again cut the lead, making it 39-35 with eight minutes left after scoring four straight. They still had it within four points, 44-40, with just 2:15 left, but the Petrels got a big 3-pointer from junior forward Karlymarie Dyer with just under two minutes left keying a 9-2 run which put the game on ice. Oglethorpe took a 53-42 lead, their largest of the contest, with 36 seconds on the clock.

Senior forward Lauren Ransom led the way for the Petrels with 15 points and seven rebounds to go with a pair of steals and a pair of blocks. Senior guard Jada Triplett got her first start of the season and scored 13 points on 4-of-6 from the field and perfect 5-of-5 from the free-throw line.

The Petrels forced 19 Centre turnovers and outscored their opponent 19-4 off takeaways. They also bested the Colonels 26-18 in the paint.

Oglethorpe will next head to Tennessee where they'll take on Sewanee Sunday at 2 p.m. EST. After that, they'll return home to take on Berry Saturday at 6 p.m. in their final regular-season game.