ANGOLA, Ind. – The Trine University women's basketball team outlasted Alma College on Wednesday night 65-49 in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) contest.
The win moves the Thunder to 11-2 in the 2021-22 season and 4-1 in league action. The Scots from Alma College fall to 8-5 overall and 2-2 in the MIAA.
Two big takeaways from the game were second chance points and bench points. Trine outscored their opponents 20-2 off of their own misses and had 30 points from bench pieces compared to zero for the Scots.
"I give them a lot of credit, they play hard every time," Associate Head Coach Rob Hoffman said postgame. "We tell our girls to match their intensity. We didn't hit shots early on tonight and that happens, but we want to be intense because we want to get a stop every time."
That they did on the defensive end of the floor, as the Thunder held Alma to just 27.4% (17-for-62) from the field and 15.8% (3-for-19) from deep.
After nearly two minutes of scoreless action, Kayla Wildman [Rockford, Mich. / Rockford] converted a lay-up from Makayla Ardis [Lake City, Mich. / Lake City] to give Trine a 2-0 lead. A pair of makes for the Scots allowed the visitors to make their only lead of the game, but Kelsy Taylor [Louisville, Ky. / New Albany] hit back-to-back shots to reclaim the lead.
Rachel Stewart [Pekin, Ind. / Eastern] came off the bench to score the final six points of the quarter to make it 14-12 after 10 minutes.
Katie Sloneker [Monroe, Ohio / Monroe] assisted on consecutive makes to begin the second, including a Tara Bieniewicz [Chesterfield, Mich. / Dakota] three-point field goal and jump shot by Ardis. Taylor completed the 9-0 run later in the period, the largest scoring spurt of the game for either team.
Stewart recorded a steal and score with just under two minutes to go in the period to claim a 29-17 lead, but two makes by Alma before the end of the frame made it 29-21 Thunder before the teams returned to their perspective locker rooms.
The Scots had a shot to make it a one-possession game after scoring the first four points of the third quarter, but the miss was gathered by Trine and taken the other way for an Ardis three. Wildman knocked down a shot from three-point land one minute later to bring the advantage back to double figures, 37-25.
"I have a lot more confidence, especially compared to last year," Ardis explained after her 11-point, five rebound night. "I feel like this season I've gotten stronger."
Alyssa Argyle [Freeland, Mich. / Freeland] got in on the long-range shooting party with a three with 4:26 to go in the third stanza to make the score 43-29. Sam Underhill [Grand Rapids, Mich. / Northview] hit four shots from the free throw line to wrap up the quarter at 49-34.
The Thunder allowed the Scots to creep back into the game after almost five minutes of scoreless basketball in crunch time, but a timeout from Head Coach Andy Rang swung momentum back in favor of the home squad. An and-one by Underhill and wing three from Wildman secured the victory for the sixth-ranked team in NCAA DIII.
The final score was 65-49 after makes from Sophie Sloneker [Monroe, Ohio / Monroe], Wildman, Ardis and Stewart late.
Stewart led all scorers with 14 points and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line. As a team, Trine shot 100% (13-for-13) on freebees. Ardis and Wildman finished in double figures as well with 11 and 10 points. Taylor and Underhill each pulled down 10 rebounds, a season-high for both forwards. Katie Sloneker dished out six assists in the win, a career-best for the junior.
It's a men's and women's doubleheader next on the schedule when the Thunder square off with Kalamazoo College at home on Saturday, January 15. It is Community Day with free admission. Tip-off for the women's game is at 1 pm.