A long road trip appears to be just what the doctor ordered for the Hillsdale College women's basketball team's offense.
Making its longest trek of the season to Nashville, Tennesse and host Trevecca Nazarene on Thursday night, the Chargers scorched the nets in Trojan Fieldhouse with their highest-scoring outing this season in an 84-68 victory.
Hillsdale went 13 for 30 on 3-point attempts, good for 43.3 percent from beyond the arc, while holding the opposing Trojans to just 20 percent from deep.
Sophomore forward Sydney Mills led the way for the Chargers with a new career-high in points, finishing with 23 on the night as well as seven rebounds. Mills also hit all three of her 3-point attempts on the evening, including a shot from the top of the key as time expired in the third quarter that capped a 7-2 Hillsdale run to end the period and gave the Chargers a solid lead it wouldn't relinquish the rest of the way.
Junior guard Grace Touchette also was huge down the stretch for Hillsdale, scoring eight of her 21 points in the fourth quarter to help Hillsdale extend its lead to as much as 16 in the closing minutes. Touchette also added five assists.
Fellow junior Lauren Daffenberg helped spark Hillsdale's hot shooting night in the second quarter, coming in off the bench and knocking down two 3-pointers in each half to finish with 16 points and four rebounds.
Guards Dani Salenbien and Jaycie Burger also made big impacts on the contest for the Chargers. Salenbien, a freshman, finished with 10 points, four rebounds and four assists to give the Chargers a fourth double-figure scorer, while Burger, a senior, flirted with a triple-double, putting up eight points, a career-high 11 rebounds and six assists to lead Hillsdale in both rebounds and assists.
The Chargers snap a three-game losing streak and improve to 2-8 overall and in G-MAC play with the victory. Hillsdale continues its road trip on Saturday with a contest at Kentucky Wesleyan, beginning at 1 p.m. ET. The Panthers topped the Chargers 72-62 at Hillsdale on Dec. 15 earlier in the season, giving Hillsdale extra motivation to seek a road upset on Saturday.
Photo: Sydney Mills (5). Photo by Anthony Lupi