NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Trine University women's basketball team snapped their two-game losing spell with a convincing 83-43 victory at Saint Mary's College on Saturday afternoon. The win makes Trine 14-6 through 20 games and 8-3 inside the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) while Saint Mary's falls to 5-14 and 2-8 in league play.
A season-high 24 offensive rebounds were the key to success as the Thunder took 29 more shot attempts than the Belles. Trine was 33-for-77 (42.9%) from the field and Saint Mary's held to 14-for-48 (29.2%). The Thunder also had 15 steals on 25 Belle turnovers.
Seven of the offensive rebounds were credited to Olivia Marks off the bench as she tallied a career-high eight boards. The leader in scoring for Trine was Sierra Hinds with 19 points and four triples. Sidney Wagner and Jada Rhonehouse had three steals each.
A 31-9 win in the first quarter put the Thunder in the driver's seat from the opening tip-off. Work on the offensive glass led to scores by Hinds and Katie Tate and transition opportunities allowed Trine to go up 9-3 and force a timeout from the Belles. Hinds would catch fire from deep in the middle stages of the period and Allison Capouch joined the three-point brigade to extend the lead to 22-8. Chelsi Giesige knocked down a mid-range jump shot as the period came to a close.
Saint Mary's would make a run to begin the second quarter, however field goals by Addison Hutson, Sydney Horton and Erin Sherwood off the bench gave momentum back to the visitors. A make by Jordan Walters put the Thunder up 46-16 at the break.
A 12-0 run to begin the second half propelled Trine to a 58-16 advantage. Hinds was responsible for eight of the points during the scoring run. The third would end on a high note as well with consecutive three-point field goals by Angelina Tringali and Hutson to put the scoreboard at 72-23 in favor of the Thunder.
Walters kept the long-distance parade going to start the fourth quarter by knocking down a shot from beyond the arc. The Belles would win the fourth 20-11, but Kearston Stout, Anna Grim and Tiana Maat added their names to the scoring column before the final buzzer at 83-43.
Trine receives a bye on the next conference date of Wednesday, January 31, meaning their next contest will be at Alma College on Saturday, February 3. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m.