The Hillsdale College women's basketball team entered Thursday's home contest against #4/7 Ashland looking to pull an upset.
But a tough night offensively made keeping pace with the high-powered Eagles too tall a task in an 80-55 loss that drops the Chargers to 9-6 overall on the season.
Hillsdale scored nearly 20 points below its season average in the loss, shooting just 31.3 percent from the floor to fall behind by double-digits in the first quarter, and never really found a rhythm in the contest, as tough defense by Ashland and missed opportunities on open looks gave the Chargers problems all night.
At the other end, Ashland started hot, hitting two 3-pointers for its first two shots of the game, and rode strong shooting to victory, hitting 12 3-pointers and dishing out 25 assists in the victory. The Eagles built a 20-point halftime lead, then clamped down further in the third quarter, outscoring Hillsdale 21-8 to put the game away. The Chargers' bench had a solid final quarter, outscoring the Eagles 19-11 to cut into the final margin, but didn't have enough firepower to overturn a 30-plus point lead in such a short amount of time.
Senior Grace Touchette led the Chargers with 12 points, and sophomore Dani Salenbien shot 50 percent from the floor to finish with 10 points, six rebounds and five assists. Junior Sydney Mills chipped in four points, five rebounds and three blocks for Hillsdale, while Peighton Nelson chipped in six points and three assists.
Freshman Carly Callahan had a solid game off the bench as well, chipping in nine points, and junior Maverick Delp added four points and three rebounds.
Despite the loss, Hillsdale remains in a decent position in the race for a G-MAC tournament berth at 6-3 overall. The Chargers hit the road on Saturday to take on a talented Tiffin team that will be playing its first game in nearly a month after multiple Covid-19 cancellations. Tip-off for that contest is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Photo by Isabella Sheehan