The Hillsdale College women's basketball team scorched the nets at home on Thursday with its best 3-point shooting performance in nearly two full seasons to blitz visiting Tiffin, 92-53 for the team's fifth straight victory.

The Chargers shot 15 of 28 from deep, 56.3%, its most made 3-pointers and best percentage since a 17 3-pointer performance at Findlay in the final game of the 2022-23 regular season. Hillsdale shot 50% or better from beyond the arc in every quarter, and that shooting touch paired with an excellent defensive effort allowed Hillsdale to put the Dragons away early.

The Chargers led 26-15 after one quarter and by 20 points at halftime. Hillsdale snuffed out any lingering chance of a Dragons comeback in the third quarter, conceding just eight points to the Dragons and holding them without a field goal for over seven minutes to put the game out of reach.

Hillsdale's excellent performance was spearheaded by senior Caitlin Splain, who knocked down five of her six 3-point attempts to finish with 21 points, four rebounds and three steals. Already ranked fourth all-time at Hillsdale in career made 3-point attempts, Splain's performance was no surprise, and it was also met by her teammates. Sophomore Annalise Pietrzyk was 3 of 5 from deep to finish with nine points off the bench, and sophomore Sydney Pnacek and freshman Emilia Sularski each made a pair of 3-pointers as well. 

Savannah Smith added 13 points and three steals in a strong performance in the paint, pairing with freshman Ellie Bruce, who just missed a double-double off the bench with 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocks in 16 minutes of action. Kendall McCormick added 10 points and five assists as well for Hillsdale, Emma Ruhlman chipped in nine points, and senior Lauren McDonald had a quiet night in the scoring column but facilitated for her teammates, finishing with a career-high nine assists as well as eight rebounds.

Hillsdale dominated the glass, grabbing 14 offensive rebounds and outrebounding the Dragons 42-29. The Chargers also created 19 points off of 18 Tiffin turnovers while committing just 10 turnovers themselves, and did an excellent job passing the ball -- the team's 25 assists were not only a season high but the most by the Chargers in four seasons, since a 109-62 win over Ohio Valley on Feb. 23, 2021.

The Chargers are now 8-5 overall, 5-1 in the G-MAC and remain in a three-way tie for second place in the standings with Findlay and Ashland, a game behind undefeated Malone. Hillsdale has a big road trip up next on Saturday as the Chargers travel to Cedarville to take on a Yellow Jackets team that's nipping at their heels in the standings at 1 p.m.

Photo by Emma Purdy