RIPON, Wis. – The Carroll University women's basketball team scored 32 points in the second quarter and held off a comeback late to stop the Ripon Red Hawks by a score of 72-61 on Saturday afternoon. Olivia Rangel led the Pioneers with 14 points with an efficient 6-9 shooting. Natalie Palzkill added 11 points and team highs of seven rebounds and five assists off the bench.
 
The Pioneers (3-4) got 26 points from the bench led by Palzkill, and scored 32 points in the paint, carried by 12 points from Allison Thompson. The Pioneers shot over 58% from the floor and over 46% from three. In 12 free throw attempts, Carroll also knocked down 10 of their chances. Carroll gained 15 points from 20 forced Ripon turnovers and 10 steals, including a career-high six from Katie Evans in her 34 minutes.
 
Thompson scored six of Carroll's first 11 points to help give them an 11-7 advantage just over halfway in the first quarter, but Ripon responded with a 9-0 run that silenced the Pioneers. Chloe Halverson knocked down a three-point jump shot a second before the end of the first quarter to cut the lead to two going into the second quarter. Ripon led by five with 8:17 left in the second, but a Palzkill second-chance layup the next possession sparked a massive Pioneer run. Brooke Foster knocked down two three-pointers, Evans added seven points, and Rangel scored 10 in the second to finish the second quarter up 20 points.
 
Ripon started the second half with a 14-4 run to cut their deficit to ten, but three straight layups by the Pioneers off turnovers kept Carroll out front. Halverson and Megan Madsen scored before the end of the third as the Pioneers went into the last ten minutes up 17. A slow start for the Pioneers offensively let Ripon back in the ball game, cutting the lead to nine with 2:18 left in the game. With under a minute, both Kate Christian and Palzkill added free throws to keep the Pioneers up double-digits before the final buzzer.
 
The Pioneers welcome North Central College back to Van Male Field House on Wednesday, November 30 at 7 PM to kick off the CCIW season. In their last matchup, the Pioneers dominated the Cardinals on their way to the CCIW Tournament Semifinals.