ALLIANCE, Ohio – The Heidelberg University women's basketball team rang in the year with a resounding 75-65 win over conference rival Mount Union on Saturday. Four Student Princes finished in double figures, Heidelberg's second straight win at Mount Union.

THREE STARS

• Junior Allie Hawkins tied a career high with a 16-point outburst to lead Heidelberg.
• Shelby Dearth, who originally attended Mount Union before transferring to HU, hit two key 3-pointers in the second half and finished with 12 points.
• Off the bench, sophomore transfer Theresa Jackson poured in 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the floor.

FIRST HALF

Mount Union grabbed a quick 4-0 lead with a pair of layups in the first 11 seconds. The four-point advantage would be the largest lead of the contest for the Purple Raiders.

Hawkins drained a pair of 3-pointers on the next two Heidelberg possessions to give the Berg its first lead.

Over the course of the half, the lead volleyed back and forth 14 times, including four times in the final minute of the period. Carli Patrick made a layup with 24 seconds remaining to give the Student Princes a 40-39 edge at intermission.

SECOND HALF

Annie Bova hit a 3-pointer early in the second half to give Mount a 42-40 lead. Bova finished with a game-high 24 points.

On the ensuing Berg possession, Dearth hit a 3-pointer to put HU back on top. Dearth's basket was part of a 9-0 run that put the Student Princes out in front to stay.

After MTU cut the Heidelberg lead to three with 5:47 left, Dearth connected on her second 3-pointer. The triple gave her squad a 65-59 edge and helped regain momentum.

A three-point play by Patrick with two minutes left put Heidelberg up nine and essentially sealed the victory. As Mount started to foul to try to extend the game, Paige Ricketts sank five of her six free throw attempts.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• After her string of six straight double-doubles was snapped on New Year's Eve, Carli Patrick responded with 11 points and 11 rebounds against the Purple Raiders.
• In a two-minute span midway through the second half, Marisa Liburdi scored seven straight points for Heidelberg.
• Heidelberg outshot Mount Union, 59.2% to 42.6%, and won the battle on the glass, 35 to 28.
• Mount Union (5-6, 1-3 OAC) only attempted two free throws, missing both.
• In addition to her seven points, Ricketts tallied seven boards and a season-high six assists.

NOTABLE QUOTES

Head coach Morgan Shriver on the win: "We asked the team to play great half-court defense and they accepted that challenge ... We had confidence in each other and pulled out a great team win."

Shriver on the team's offensive success: "Being able to fire on all cylinders really helped us offensively ... We were more selective on our outside shots, which let us get in a rhythm as a unit. The 3-pointers we made were momentum-changers for us."

Shriver on picking up an OAC win on the road: "Although we were on the road, our supporters made it feel like a home game ... Our girls were definitely feeding off of our crowd."

UP NEXT

Heidelberg (4-7, 2-2 OAC) wraps up a stretch of four games in eight days with another big OAC contest on Tuesday. Wilmington College (7-4, 2-2 OAC) will travel to Tiffin for a 7:30 p.m. game.