RICHMOND, IN – The Principia women's basketball team traveled to Indiana on Friday for the Melissa Johnson / HOPE Classic hosted by Earlham College. After 13 days in between games, the Panthers took on Earlham on Friday evening, followed by Anderson University on Saturday afternoon.
Friday's matchup against the host Quakers began with a quick three-pointer by the Panthers top threat from deep,
Hannah Myers. From there, Principia exploded out to a 19-4 lead in the first seven minutes, eventually finishing the opening quarter up 23-13. As good as the Panthers played in the first, they outdid themselves in the second quarter by outscoring the Quakers 32-10 to take a resounding 32 point lead at halftime. The second half played more evenly as Principia protected a huge lead, but in the end, the Panthers earned a dominant victory, 92-60.
As was the case in their first two wins, Principia continued to receive balanced scoring across their top six.
Ariana Williams had her first double-double of the season with 15 points and 14 rebounds, while
Trinniti Matthews came close to her first double-double with 16 points and 9 rebounds.
Taylor Brown had her highest scoring game of the season with 15 points of her own, while
Hannah Myers scored 13 points on 4 three-pointers.
Genesis Santiago and
Lamiya Terrell also finished with 10 and 8 points, respectively.
The Panthers played great defense across the board with 8 players combining for 22 steals as they were led by Terrell with 5, and 4 each for Myers and Brown. Myers also blocked 2 shots, while Matthews had a team-high 4 blocks.
Saturday's game against the Anderson Ravens did not go as well for Principia as they struggled to find a rhythm early and fell behind 27-10 after the first quarter. Despite a better second quarter where they outscored Anderson by 6, the Panthers' struggles continued in the second half as they combined to shoot below 30% in game for the first time since last January and ultimately lost 86-65.
Trinniti Matthews was a bright spot for Principia as she finished with a season-high 23 points – including a career-high 3 three-pointers – while adding 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 steals.
The Panthers will have a quick turnaround as they head straight up to Wisconsin for games on Sunday and Tuesday against two strong opponents in UW-Stevens Point and UW-Whitewater.
