Top-ranked Tigers clinch third straight NCAC title

Regular-season win streak reaches 75

Behind a school record-tying 13 three-pointers, the top-ranked Tigers clinched their third North Coast Athletic Conference title in as many years since joining the league with a 74-50 win over visiting Hiram on Saturday.

DePauw improved to 22-0 overall and 13-0 in the NCAC and Hiram slipped to 5-17 overall and 1-12 in the conference.

The teams battled back and forth over the opening stages of the first half with four ties and nine lead changes in the opening 12 minutes.

Emma Ondik's three-pointer with 6:38 left gave DePauw a 23-20 lead and started a 12-0 run as Lauren Abendroth, Ondik and Hannah Douglas followed with treys to push the Tigers' lead to 32-20 at the 2:47 mark.

Hiram briefly stopped the Tigers' surge, but the hosts closed the half with an 11-2 stretch that pushed the advantage to 43-24 at the intermission.

The Terriers closed the margin to 15 early in the second half, but DePauw gradually stretched the lead to as many as 27 late in the game.

Douglas paced DePauw with 16 points, while Alex Gasaway added 15. Ondik and Abendroth each hit four three-pointers and scored 12. Alison Stephens led the Tigers with nine rebounds as DePauw held a 39-25 edge on the boards, while Douglas also handed out five assists.

Danielle Day posted a double-double for Hiram with 16 points and 13 rebounds with Kayla Yost adding 11 points.

The Tigers shot 47.3 percent from the floor to Hiram's 41.5 percent and DePauw knocked in 13-of-22 from beyond the arc.

The win was DePauw's 56th straight which is the third longest in NCAA Division III women's history and fifth longest on all levels of NCAA women's basketball. It also marked the Tigers' 75th straight regular season win, its 29th consecutive home win and 53rd straight conference victory. DePauw has also won 86 straight conference home games dating back to 2003.

Including the final two years in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, the Tigers have now won five straight conference titles and eight in the last nine seasons.

DePauw returns to play on Wednesday when it travels to Wittenberg for a 6 p.m. NCAC contest.