MEADVILLE, Pa. - It was an excellent way to conclude a long road trip just after the new year is rung in. The Wittenberg University Tigers opened defense of their 2002 North Coast Athletic Conference regular season championship with a pair of convincing road wins over conference rivals Hiram and Allegheny. The latter was by an 80-56 margin at Allegheny on Saturday.

Wittenberg never trailed in the game and opened up a 14-point lead by halftime and a 34-point lead midway through the second half. For the second straight day, all 15 players who made the trip appeared in the game and made an impression upon the scoreboard. Senior forward Meghan Bruggeman (Middletown, Ohio/Fenwick) led the way with 13 points, junior guard Amber Bishop (Batavia, Ohio/Batavia) added 12 points in just 13 minutes off the bench, senior forward Tiffany Keller (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw) chipped in with 11 points in her first start of the season and senior guard Kate Rolf (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Carroll) finished with 10 points to round out the double-figure scorers.

Wittenberg's defense was outstanding again, forcing 30 Allegheny turnovers and harrassing the Gators into 38 percent shooting from the field. The Tigers also outrebounded the Gators 37-32.

The win moved Wittenberg to 7-4 overall and 2-0 in the NCAC heading into Wednesday's huge conference match-up with two-time defending NCAC tournament champion Ohio Wesleyan at the HPER Center in Springfield. Allegheny fell to 3-8 overall and 1-2 in the conference.