ONU Athletics
Sam Viebrock
DEERFIELD, Ill. – The Olivet Nazarene University women’s basketball team picked up their 10th win of the season and seventh of the conference after defeating Trinity International University, 97-80, Saturday afternoon on the road. The Tigers’ bench led the way combining for 51 points with Karina Smitsand Olivia Demosthenes eclipsing double figures in scoring.
Trinity International got off the block quickly going on a 6-0 run. Olivet answered with a 7-1 run of their own to get back on track. A Zanna Myers bucket at the 6:08 minute-mark caused the only lead change of the game which gave the Tigers an 11-10 advantage. ONU began to build their lead going on an 18-4 run in the final 2:51 to hold a 36-21 lead at the first official break. Johnson and Smits each recorded eight points in the first period combining for an efficient 6-8 from the floor.
Olivet cooled off in the second quarter shooting only 22.7%. The Tiger bench carried much of the load scoring 12 of ONU’s 14 points for the second quarter. Despite the offensive struggles, they held the Titan offense to shooting only 31.3% resulting in only 14 points scored. Olivia Demosthenes registered four points while Avery Curry and Karina Smits added an additional three each in the period. Kaitlyn Clark dominated the glass in the second grabbing five rebounds. Olivet Nazarene carried a comfortable lead heading into the halftime break.
Where both teams struggled to find points in the second quarter, The Tigers and Titans found their rhythm in the third. ONU shot at a clip of 52.4% from the floor to TIU’s 66.7%. Both squads converted 50% of their three-point attempts. Both teams went back and forth with an answer for each bucket for the first nine minutes. The Olivet lead never grew over 16 and never fell below 10 until the final minute where Jamie Finn, Khendel Rolison, and Caroline Boehnecontributed to a late 7-0 run to head into the final quarter leading 76-58.
Production from the Tiger’s bench saw out the rest of the game with four different players combining for 10 points down the stretch. ONU took advantage of TIU mistakes scoring 27 points off of 26 Titan turnovers. Boehne and Clark combined for nine of the team’s 14 offensive boards in the contest. The Tigers scored nine second-chance in route to the win.
Kaitlyn Clark led the team by snagging a season-high 8 rebounds.
ONU scored 51 points off the bench to TIU’s 18.
All 14 players for the Tigers scored in the game. Kennedy Johnson scored a team-high 15 points, her 11th game in double figures.
Maggie Cora tied a season-high swiping four steals.
The Tigers will welcome St. Ambrose University next Wednesday at McHie Arena. The Fighting Bees sit on top in the CCAC standings, are riding 11-game winning streak, and defeated the Tigers in the CCAC regular season opener earlier this season.