ASHLAND – History was made Thursday night in Kates Gymnasium.
The Ashland University women completed a perfect 28-0 regular season – the first in the program’s history – with a 106-76 win over Tiffin University on Senior Night. The win also gave AU a 20-0 GLIAC record, the first for a women’s basketball team in the conference.
“The best part about this season has been the joy that’s been within it. Going undefeated in the regular season is a feat, but there’s so many things that go into that that are way beyond the box score and the games. So that’s what we reveled in. What’s gotten us here has been a lot of intangibles and the whole team putting the team first. That’s what we celebrated,” Ashland coach Robyn Fralick said. “We know moving forward it’s a new season. We basically have a brand new season starting again. But this season, what we were able to do is because of a really special group.”
Three seniors played their final regular season games for the Eagles: Kelsey Peare, Alex Henning and Rachelle Morrison. Peare scored 15 points and dished out 4 assists. Henning had 5 points, 4 rebounds and 1 steal. Morrison scored 3 points and grabbed 1 rebound.
“Their legacy is way beyond wins, and the wins are a reflection of what they’ve given to this program,” Fralick said. “There’s a reason why we are where we are right now and they’re a major part of that. It takes a lot over the course of a season to continually put the team first and they’ve done that and they’ve modeled what that looks like for our team.”
“Unbelievable leaders, every single one of them,” freshman Jodi Johnson said of the three seniors. “Every single one of them brings something special to this team.”
Tiffin was able to keep the game close in the first quarter, trailing just 29-20 at the end of the stanza. AU went up by as much as 18 late in the 2nd quarter, but Tiffin was able to cut it to 13 at the half, 53-40.
The Eagles went on a 23-0 run to start the second half, putting the game out of reach for Tiffin.
“That was the turning point,” Fralick said. “We decided to guard with energy and effort and when we do that, then that dictates our entire game.”
AU dominated on the boards with a 46-33 advantage, including 15 offensive rebounds. Julie Worley led the way with 9 boards and Andi Daugherty and Sara Loomis added 8 a piece.
Six Eagles scored in double figures, led by Worley and Johnson with 20 points. Peare added 15 in her final regular season game, including 3-of-5 from behind the arc. Daugherty scored 12 points. Sara Loomis added 13 points and 8 rebounds off the bench and Maddie Dackin chipped in with 10 points. Freshman Renee Stimpert unleashed a number of dazzling passes, finishing with 9 assists.
The AU women will host a GLIAC tournament game on Tuesday, Feb. 28, at 5:30 p.m. against Walsh.
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