A dominant third quarter performance helped the Hillsdale College women's basketball team win on the road, 69-62, at Ohio Dominican and move above .500 for the first time since November 13.

Leading by six at the half, the Chargers shot 53% from the floor and knocked down four 3-pointers in the third period to outscore Ohio Dominican 25-14 in the quarter, taking a 17 point lead into the fourth and turning a competitive game into a rout.

Hillsdale continued to roll in the fourth quarter, leading by as many as 21 with 3:34 to play before Ohio Dominican made a big push against the Chargers' deep bench late. The Panthers, however, never pulled closer than seven points before time expired.

Playing close to her hometown of Powell in central Ohio, senior Caitlin Splain catalyzed the Chargers' third quarter explosion, with three 3-pointers in two minutes of action to kick off a big run by the Chargers. Splain finished the game with 15 points and seven rebounds to lead the Chargers, and with four 3-pointers in the contest became just the fifth player in Hillsdale College women's basketball history to surpass 200 made 3-pointers in her career.

Fellow senior Lauren McDonald added 15 points, seven rebounds and two steals in a strong performance as well for Hillsdale, while junior Emma Ruhlman followed up a career-high 11 points in the Chargers' upset of Ferris State in December with 12 off the bench along with four rebounds in the win over the Panthers.

Kendall McCormick chipped in eight points and six rebounds for Hillsdale, Savannah Smith added eight points and Annalise Pietrzyk chipped in four points, five rebounds and five assists.

While Hillsdale didn't pull away until the third quarter, the Chargers were in control throughout, taking a 16-8 lead after the first quarter and never trailing after the first three minutes of the game. Hillsdale outrebounded Ohio Dominican 45-38 and got 23 points off the bench, a third of their scoring, in the victory.

The Chargers improve to 6-5 overall, 3-1 in G-MAC play with the victory and remain a game behind conference leader Malone in the standings. Hillsdale will return home on Saturday for a 1 p.m. G-MAC contest against Lake Erie, who fell to 0-4 in G-MAC play tonight with a 98-74 loss to Northwood.

Photo by Kenneth Gaudet