The climb up the Great Midwest Athletic Conference ladder continues for Ashland University's women's basketball team, as, on Thursday (Jan. 22) night, the Eagles topped Ursuline, 77-48, at the Sherrill Hudson Court at Kates Gymnasium.
Thanks to a sixth consecutive win – and the program's 40
th consecutive victory in the month of January – Ashland improves to 11-5 overall and 7-3 in the Great Midwest, now tied for third place in the league.
"I think our team is still coming together," said Ashland head coach
Kari Pickens. "We had some leadership today out there from our guards, in a really cool way."
In the Eagles' most lopsided win of 2025-26, the Eagles accomplished a first this winter – a game with at least 20 assists. Ashland dished out 22 helpers on 31 made field goals.
"We've really tried to work on moving the ball a little bit better than we have been, and I thought today showcased that," Pickens said.
The start of Thursday night's game was a stalemate, with Ashland leading 8-5 early despite a pair of quick 3-point field goals. Ursuline (4-14, 1-10), however, with consecutive triples, took an 11-8 lead.
Neither team shot well in the opening quarter (AU 35.3 percent, the Arrows 42.9), and the Arrows led 15-14 through one.
As Ashland pulled away in the second quarter, freshman forward
Jenna Slates began to assert herself. The leading freshman rebounder in NCAA Division II women's basketball, Slates finished the first half with a double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds).
The Eagles out-scored the Arrows in the second period, 29-9, and took a 43-24 lead into the locker room. Ursuline was kept to just 3-of-16 shooting overall in the second, and 0-of-7 from the arc.
In the third quarter, the Arrows made just 3-of-17 from the floor, and Ashland took a 63-34 lead into the final stanza and on to victory.
TWO DOUBLE-DIGIT 'BOUNDERS
- Slates' 10th double-double of the campaign featured 19 points and 15 rebounds.
- Redshirt freshman forward Kyra Hill grabbed a career-high 11 boards, to go with eight points, three blocks and two steals.
- For a third straight game, junior guard Gia Casalinova finished with a season-high point total (15).
- Sophomore point guard Ashley Mullet rounded out three AU players in double-digit scoring with 10 points.
- Senior guard Alysa Lopez scored eight points, had six assists and five rebounds, and didn't turn the ball over.
- "I thought Alysa, that was her best game in an Ashland uniform, in terms of efficiency," Pickens said.
- Ashland out-rebounded Ursuline 46-32 on Thursday night – a season-best plus-14 margin.
COMING UP
Back on the road for a conference game at Hillsdale (8-7, 4-5) at 1 p.m. on Saturday (Jan. 24).
