Box Score HANOVER, Ind. – The fourth quarter decided the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference matchup between the Panthers (15-6 overall, 9-5 HCAC) and Rose-Hulman as the Fightin' Engineers held on for the 76-70 win.
Rose-Hulman used a full-court press to claim the early 8-2 advantage, forcing four Panther turnovers in the opening three minutes. Senior
Katherine Benter (Brownstown, Ind.) looked to spark the offense with a three-pointer, but Rose-Hulman was red hot. Hanover found some momentum, cutting the first-quarter deficit to 20-17.
They claimed their first lead just seconds into the second quarter as Benter drained a three from downtown before a sophomore
Sammy Berman (Independence, Ky.) steal and score propelled them out front, 22-20. Junior
Kaitlyn Lorenzi (Brentwood, Tenn.) dominated the offensive boards with her aggressive style of play to get a Hanover put-back. In the first half, Berman was an unstoppable force, netting 12 points as the Panthers trailed just 41-37.
The back-and-forth battle ensued in the second half as Hanover applied the full-court pressure, hoping to jump-start the offense. It appeared to be working as junior
Alexis Wines (Lebanon, Ind.) drained a three-pointer at the 8:00 minute mark, giving the Panthers their largest lead to date. Senior
Grace Bezold (Covington, Ky.) and Berman built on the advantage, extending the score to 53-45. The lead reached double-digits as Bezold recorded 10 third-quarter points. Hanover closed out the frame clinging to a 63-57 difference.
The intensity and pace of play quickly increased as Rose-Hulman cut the lead to 66-63 just two minutes into the fourth quarter. Their intensity propelled them back on top with 6:19 remaining, 67-66. Hanover broke the scoreless drought with 3:51 to play as Berman got to the rim on the inbounds pass. Bezold put the Blue and Red back on top with a fastbreak layup but Rose-Hulman hung tough posting a big defensive stop in the final seconds for the road win.
INSIDE THE STATS
Berman – 18 pts. | 5 ast. | 3 stl.
Wines – 18 pts. | 4 stl. | 3 ast.
Bezold – 16 pts. | 5 reb.
Hanover returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 8 when they travel to Manchester. Game time is set for 4:00 PM.
