Women’s basketball team beats Adrian, 80-68, to secure fourth seed in MIAA Tournament

OLIVET, Mich. – The Olivet College women's basketball team celebrated Senior Day by defeating Adrian College, 80-68, this afternoon at The Cutler Event Center in Olivet. With the win, the Comets secure the fourth seed in the 2016 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament.

Olivet led by as many as 15 points, 21-6, at the 1:36 mark of the opening quarter. Adrian scored the last four points of the quarter to make the score 21-10. In the opening 10 minutes of the game, the Comets shot 47.1 percent compared to 26.7 percent for the Bulldogs.

Adrian the second quarter with a 10-4 run to cut its deficit down to five points, 25-20. Olivet pushed its lead back to double figures, 32-20, at the 4:31 mark. The Bulldogs scored the final nine points of the quarter to trail by only three points, 32-29, at halftime.

In the third quarter, Adrian cut its deficit to one point, 35-34, at the 6:26 mark. The Comets then went on a 13-2 run to go up by 12 points, 48-36, with 1:16 left in the quarter. Olivet settled for an 11-point advantage, 52-41, at the end of the third period.

The Comets went ahead by 14 points in the opening 13 seconds of the fourth quarter after senior Morgan West made a three-pointer from the left baseline. The Bulldogs would only get as close as seven points on three occasions in the final quarter. Olivet sealed the win by making nine-of-10 free throws in the final minute of the game.

For the game, the Comets made 27-of-63 baskets (42.9 percent) and 23-of-32 free throws (71.9 percent), while the Bulldogs were 25-of-65 (38.5 percent) from the floor and 14-of-20 (70.0 percent) from the charity stripe. Olivet had five players score in double figures. Senior Shauni Hankins led the way with 18 points. Junior Katie McKinnon added 13 points, while senior Dallas Austin chipped-in with 12. Senior Jackie Harwood and junior T'Keyia Collins had 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Austin also grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds for her second double-double of the season. Hankins also had a game-high five assists.

Amber McCullough paced Adrian with 25 points. Mariah Jackson had 14. Kennedy Kunce pulled down a team-best 10 rebounds.

The Comets will play at No. 1 seed Hope College in the MIAA Tournament semifinals. Game time at the DeVos Fieldhouse in Holland is 5:30 p.m.