If the No. 5-ranked Ashland University women's basketball team wanted to make a statement going into the 2022 Great Midwest Athletic Conference Tournament, it certainly did.
On Saturday (Feb. 26) afternoon at the Sherrill Hudson Court at Kates Gymnasium, the Eagles ran past Hillsdale, 95-54, on Senior Day to not only clinch the Great Midwest regular-season championship, but give them the right to play host to the conference tournament Final Four on March 4-5.
"I thought it was a great way to honor our senior class," said Ashland head coach
Kari Pickens. "To come out and win a GMAC championship outright is, I think, a reflection of our seniors, a group of players who always put the team first."
Ashland ends the regular year at 26-2 overall and 21-1 in the league, and Hillsdale does the same at 13-14, 10-11.
WHAT HAPPENED
- A spirited first half of the opening quarter resulted in a 9-8 Ashland lead. Fittingly on Senior Day, senior forward Karlee Pireu had seven of the first nine Eagle points. Six straight AU points made it a 15-8 advantage, forcing a Charger timeout.
- The overall run reached 12-0 to end the first, as the Eagles took a 21-8 lead into the second stanza. Pireu had nine points in the first 10 minutes, outscoring Hillsdale by a point.
- It was an eight-point separation at 23-15 early in the second, but Ashland worked its lead back to double figures, and once junior forward Annie Roshak made two free throws, the Eagles had their largest lead to that point at 31-17.
- Not content with that lead, Ashland scored five more in a row to make it a 36-17 game and force another Hillsdale stoppage. At halftime, however, an overall 27-6 run put the Eagles ahead, 48-19, and most of the traditional hallmarks were there – 51.4-percent shooting, a 25-13 rebounding advantage, 12 assists to five turnovers, keeping Hillsdale to 8-of-28 from the floor, and scoring 14 points off eight Charger miscues.
- Ashland outscored Hillsdale 23-17 in the third quarter to lead 71-35 after three.
THE WRAP-UP
- Of Ashland's four double-digit scorers, two were seniors – guard Erin Daniels (17 points) and Pireu (16).
- "Early on in their careers, they were playing behind some really good players," Pickens noted. "KP came in knowing that she was going to have to play behind two All-Americans her freshman year. Erin came in knowing she was going to have to play behind two All-Americans her freshman and sophomore year. They still came here, and they came here because they wanted to win championships. They are really good basketball players, and that's what I want to be remembered."
- Freshman forward Hayley Smith also ended with 17 points, and sophomore Macy Spielman scored 14.
- The Eagles shot 50.0 percent from the field, 46.7 percent from beyond the arc and hit 9-of-9 from the foul line. Ashland outrebounded the Chargers, 47-31. Conversely, Hillsdale made 33.3 percent from the floor and 30.4 percent from downtown.
- "We put together a really strong basketball game," Pickens said. "It was really fun to see us play so well. They played really, really unselfish basketball."
- Ashland is 256-17 (.938) all-time as a ranked team in NCAA Division II, and 19-0 all-time as the No. 5 team in the nation.
UP NEXT
Playing host to the 2022 Great Midwest Athletic Conference Tournament Final Four on Friday and Saturday, and playing on Friday at 5:30 p.m. against the winner of Cedarville/Findlay. Ticket information will be released at a later date.
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