Earlham Defeats Purple and Gold for First-Ever Win in Series

RICHMOND, Ind. – The Earlham Quakers shot the lights out of the building and held down the DC women's basketball team to its second-lowest point total of the season during an 83-49 loss away from home on Wednesday, February 12.

With the victory, the Quakers (11-11, 7-8 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference) earn their first-ever win against the Yellow Jackets (9-13, 6-9 HCAC) and move into sole possession of sixth place in the league standings, while DC drops to seventh. EC had lost the first 11 contests between the two schools.

On the night, Defiance started off well by recording a layup on its first possession to go up 2-0 in only 16 seconds of play. However, that would turn out to be DC's only lead of the night, as the Quakers got on top with two straight buckets and never looked back.

The Lady Jackets were able to keep EC within striking reach for a while, as a pair of DC free throws at the 11:31 mark cut the Quakers advantage to 16-12. Unfortunately, Earlham proceeded to go on a 31-9 run over the next 10 minutes of play.

The Purple and Gold scored the last five points of the half, but it had dug a hole that was too deep to dig out of, as it went into the intermission down 47-26.

EC just could not miss in the first half of play, as it posted unreal clips of 20-of-28 (71.4 percent) from the field and 6-of-8 (75.0) from behind the arc.

In the second period, things only got worse as the Quakers extended their lead to 53-26 less than two minutes in. EC went on to cruise the rest of the way for a big 83-49 win.

It was just not the Jackets night, as Earlham could barely miss and DC struggled heavily by shooting only 18-of-55 (32.7) from the floor and 3-of-13 (23.1) from long range. The Quakers defense suffocated the Purple and Gold attack all night long, holding them to a season-low seven assists, while forcing 20 Defiance turnovers.

For the Lady Jackets, senior Hannah Harshman (Ohio City, Ohio / Parkway) still managed to put together a solid performance in the defeat. The forward shot 6-of-12 (50.0) overall for 13 points, while grabbing five rebounds.

Fellow senior Erica King (Wauseon, Ohio / Pettisville) also chipped in with 12 points on 3-of-5 (60.0) shooting from three-point land.

The Purple and Gold will return to Defiance, Ohio for two days to regroup before it goes on the road again to face-off with Heartland Conference leading Transylvania (20-2, 14-1 HCAC). Tip is slated for 1 p.m. on Saturday, February 15.