RICHMOND, Ind. – The Earlham College women's basketball team surpassed 80 points for the first time since February of 2022 in an 82-77 win over Heidelberg University in Druley Performance Gym.
The Quakers were led by
Jay Bright who scored 30 points for just the third time in her career, going 10-of-15 on field goals. Bright set a career-high with seven steals, and tallied a team-high five assists.
Berkley Shelton continued her strong start to the season with a career-high 20 points and seven boards.
Bailey Gibson reached double-digit rebounds for the first time in her career, snatching 10 and scoring nine points.
Amari Wright fell just one point short of her career high with 13, she also tallied two steals.
The Quakers shot 40.8% on field goals, and outscored Heidelberg in every quarter except the first. Earlham brought in 13 offensive rebounds, which contributed to 12 second-chance points.
After shooting 6-of-11 from 3-point range, the Student Princes led 22-14 at the end of the first quarter. Heidelberg attempted just three shots from within the arc, and made one. Earlham scored a 9-0 run in the second frame to cut the Student Princes lead to just one point at the 4:29 mark.
The Quakers shut down the Heidelberg 3-point game in the second half, and the visitors went 3-for-11 in the final two quarters. Gibson gave the Quakers their first lead in over 21 minutes with a jumper to give EC a 42-40 lead with 6:19 remaining in the third frame. Heidelberg scored a 7-0 run to lead 52-46, but the Quakers responded with an 11-4 run to lead 57-56.
Trailing by one heading into the fourth, Wright kicked off a 10-4 run early in the quarter to give Earlham a 67-62 lead. Shelton hit a free throw to cap off an 8-2 run, and give the Quakers their largest lead of the game at 76-66 with 3:45 remaining in regulation.
Heidelberg scored four straight to cut the lead to 75-70 at the two minute mark. Gibson scored a second-chance layup, but the Student Princes rushed down for a fastbreak 3-pointer. The Quakers did not get an offensive possession in the final two minutes, but shot 5-% on free throws in that span to hold the lead. Heidelberg had six possessions in the final two minutes, and came away with just four points.
Earlham hosts Aurora University on Friday evening to kick off the Melissa Johnson/HOPE Classic Tournament in Druley Performance Gym. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 pm.
