ADRIAN, Mich. – The Trine University women's basketball team began Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) play on Wednesday night when the team traveled to Adrian College to face the rival Bulldogs. The Thunder used a 17-7 second quarter advantage to propel themselves to victory, 66-54.
The 20th ranked Thunder move to 4-2 overall and have won their first conference game. Adrian falls to 3-3 overall and 0-1 in league action.
It took nearly three minutes for Trine to get on the board from a Katie Tate layup, but from there, the offense would begin to click. The Thunder rattled off 11 consecutive points to go up 13-4, highlighted by a three-point field goal by Alyssa Argyle. The Bulldogs countered with seven straight points of their own, and both teams threw punches late in a high-scoring 18-15 first quarter in favor of Trine.
Abby Sanner and Sierra Hinds opened up the second quarter with back-to-back three-point shots to make it 24-17. Sam Underhill crashed the boards hard in the period and was rewarded on the offensive end of the floor with six points and four rebounds before break. Katie Sloneker converted a pair of free throw attempts before the horn sounded to give the Thunder a 35-22 advantage.
The Bulldogs hung around in the second half however, and came out of the locker room to score five in a row. Shots at the free throw line extended the Trine lead to 14 with four minutes to play in the third, and a pair of layups by Sanner helped to negate Adrian scores on the other end. Addison Hutson did the same with a made three a few moments later. Sidney Wagner knocked down an attempt from long range that wrapped up the third quarter with the Thunder leading 51-38.
Makayla Ardis was the catalyst of the offense to start the fourth with five points in the opening two possessions offensively. An Argyle three with 7:16 to play gave Trine their largest lead of the night at 61-42. The Bulldogs were able to tack on a few extra points late, but even still the Thunder were able to secure a 66-54 victory.
Underhill collected a double-double with a team-high in points (12) and rebounds (10). Off the bench, Wagner was also in double digits with 11 points. Tate and Katie Sloneker distributed three assists each and Argyle had three of the team's 10 steals.
Trine returns home on Saturday, December 3 with a conference matchup with one of the best teams in the country. Calvin University, who is ranked number 15 by D3hoops.com, comes to Angola for a 3 p.m. MIAA game.