Wittenberg Uses Big Second Half To Defeat Earlham

RICHMOND, Ind. - The Wittenberg Tigers found themselves in a spot they didn't expect - tied up at 24 with last-place and winless Earlham four minutes into the second half. Then the Tigers turned on the afterburners, scoring the next six points and 44 of the last 61 to claim a deceiving 68-41 victory over the Quakers on their home floor.

The win kept Wittenberg tied for second place in the North Coast Athletic Conference at 11-4 and 15-9 overall, and it guaranteed a 16th consecutive winning season for the program. Earlham fell to 3-20 overall and 0-15 in the NCAC.

The Tigers took a 20-15 lead by halftime, but Earlham opened the final 20 minutes on a 9-4 run, capped by a Guin Summerton three-point play at the 15:41 mark. But sophomore post Kathy Hittle scored on a lay-up about 30 seconds later that sparked a 13-2 run that started the Tigers on toward victory. Wittenberg closed the game on a 13-1 run as numerous reserves saw extensive playing time and made the most of it.

Wittenberg shot 50 percent from the field, although that includes a paltry 2-of-12 from three-point range. However, Earlham was held to 34 percent shooting, was outrebounded 37-33 and committed seven more turnovers than the visiting Tigers.

Three Tiger players stood out at the offensive end, led by what can only be hoped will be a breakout performance from freshman guard Ellie Stonecash, who finished with 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field and 3-of-3 from the free throw line. It was a career-high for Stonecash, who has struggled to find the range of late. Hittle finished with 16 points and a game-high eight rebounds, although she missed 7-of-11 from the charity stripe. And rounding things out, senior guard Emilie Schmid scored nine of her 11 points in the second half and added four boards.