Lady Jackets Improve to 9-1 in Second Meeting with Ohio Dominican

by Evan Kakuk

The Lady Jackets defeated the Ohio Dominican University Panthers 93-63 Saturday afternoon, extending their win streak to nine. The win further secures Cedarville’s position at the top of the G-MAC standings. 

The Panthers handed Cedarville their only lost in the two teams’ first meeting in December, 95-92. However, while their first game against the Panthers was close, this game was a display of pure dominance by the Jackets with a 30-point victory.

Junior Emily Chapman led the Jackets in scoring, with 21 points, including five 3-pointers. Besides Chapman, there were four players with double-digit point totals: sophomore Isabelle Bolender with 16, junior Allison Mader with 15, senior Ashlyn Huffman with 14, and freshman Anne Wheeler with 12. Huffman lead the Jackets in assists with nine, and junior Lexi Moore led in rebounds with six. 

Cedarville began the first quarter by scoring early and often. Chapman started with a 3-point basket and followed up with another within minutes as well as a field goal from inside the line. She had eight points in just over three minutes into the game. 

Overall, in the first quarter the Panthers looked frustrated offensively. They forced several shots but struggled to get much going at first, although they did find some rhythm later in the first. Nevertheless, the Jackets’ defense proved to be a challenge. The Jackets ended the first quarter 24-17.

In the second quarter, the Panthers began looking better offensively. At one point, they came within 8 points of the Jackets, but sophomore Paige Garr answered with two layups, bringing the Jackets’ lead back up to double digits. Cedarville was ahead at the end of the half with a score of 41-28.

Ohio Dominican managed to remain resilient in the third quarter, with the Panthers’ Olivia Fox bringing her team within seven points of the Jackets with a layup and a free-throw. From that point forward until the end of the third quarter, the Panthers managed to keep their deficit in single digits, although it was very back and forth during that time, with Bolender keeping the Jackets ahead with seven points within the last three minutes of the quarter. The Jackets led at the end of the third quarter at 61-52.

The fourth quarter is when Cedarville really pulled away. The Panthers may have stayed competitive up to this point, but they honestly had no answers for the high-powered offense of the Jackets. Just two minutes into the fourth quarter, the Jackets put in three 3-point shots from Chapman, Bolender, and Garr respectively. Huffman had also put in a layup during this stretch. From that point forward, the Jackets had no issues whatsoever in terms of scoring. They managed to score 32 points in the fourth quarter, easily winning the game 93-63.

The Jackets capitalized on turnovers for 25 points, and they had 27 points off the bench.

The Jackets will now face the Trevecca Trojans on the road in Nashville, Tennessee, hoping to use their momentum to keep their streak alive.    

Evan Kakuk is a sophomore Professional Writing and Information Design major. He enjoys running, weightlifting, and playing Wii with his friends.