SHERMAN, Texas - The Austin College women's basketball team grabbed a 15-5 lead midway through the first quarter and never looked back against the University of Dallas, rolling to an 86-52 win over the Crusaders to improve to 2-0 to open the year.
The 'Roos saw 12 different players get into the scoring column in the victory, with Ally Longaker leading the way with 16 points and eight rebounds while Megan O'Neil came off the bench to score 15 points for the second time in as many games. The 'Roos dominated on the glass, pulling down 55 boards, including 20 on the offensive end, and knocked down 9-of-23 triples while Dallas made just 4-of-16 from beyond the arc. Austin College also hounded the Crusaders into 26 turnovers in the game, coming away with 15 steals while also swatting away eight shots as a team.
After taking a 21-11 lead after the opening quarter, the 'Roos clamped down even more on the defensive end, limiting Dallas to 3-of-15 shooting in the second quarter while extending their lead to 41-18 at halftime. Longaker and O'Neil combined for 11 of the team's 20 points in the quarter, and the 'Roos poured in 34 points in the third to push the lead to 75-32 heading into the final frame. Austin College shot 54.5% from the field and drilled 5-of-11 from long range, with O'Neil going 2-of-3 from deep to help the 'Roos build on their big lead. Longaker and O'Neil each scored eight in the quarter, while Katy Pool chipped in six.
The lead grew to as many as 47 points at 79-32 on a bucket by Reagan Chiaverini with 8:35 left to play and Austin College coasted the rest of the way, with no players logging more than 19 minutes in the victory. Longaker went 8-of-11 from the field to get her 16 points and O'Neil went 4-of-6 overall and 3-of-4 from deep to score her 15, adding a pair of steals in the win. Kacie West scored 11 points for the second game in a row and Addison Walling hit 3-of-4 from the field and 2-of-3 from long range to chip in with 10, adding three assists and three steals.
Camille Fowler led Dallas with 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting, and Jasmyn Franklin scored 11 coming off the bench for the Crusaders as the only other UD player to reach double-digits in the scoring column. Austin College's defense limited Dallas to just 27.9% shooting from the field in the game.
The 'Roos are back in action at home next weekend when Southwestern University comes to town with games on both Friday and Saturday in Hughey Gym.