DePauw women stay undefeated with win

FRANKLIN — DePauw, ranked sixth in the latest coaches’ poll and 15th in the D3hoops.com preseason rankings, used a 15-0 first-quarter run to get out to a big lead, but Franklin battled back to tie the game and the Tigers held on in the end for a 69-62 win. The Tigers moved to 3-0, while the Grizzlies dropped to 0-1.

The teams exchanged buckets to start the game before DePauw scored the next 15 to grab a 17-2 lead. They extended the margin to 21-4 with 3:10 left in the opening quarter on Kylie Morris’ layup. Franklin, however, responded by scoring the final eight of the stanza to cut the Tigers’ lead to 21-12.

The hosts opened the second quarter with eight straight to cap a 16-0 stretch and trim DePauw’s lead to 21-20. Emily Budde’s bucket with 6:25 remaining in the half ended DePauw’s scoring drought. Franklin knotted the score at 23-23 and again at 25-25, but the Tigers finished the quarter on an 11-2 run to grab a 36-27 halftime lead.

Franklin closed to within three at 47-44 with 2:21 remaining in the third, but DePauw scored the quarter’s final seven to take a 54-44 lead into the final quarter. The Tigers expanded the margin to 13 and held on for the win.

Maya Howard led DePauw with 17 points and five assists, while Budde followed with 15 points and Claire Keefe added 12 along with a game-high nine rebounds.

Mallory Cast paced Franklin with 20 points with Kelsey Smith chipping in 15. Bayleigh Walker led the way with five rebounds.

DePauw shot 45.1 percent from the floor to Franklin’s 41.7 percent, but the Tigers outscored the Grizzlies from the line, 19-3. The Tigers also held a commanding 43-22 edge on the boards.

DePauw returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Rose-Hulman at 4 p.m. in the second game of the Midwest Challenge. Illinois Wesleyan and Washington University in St. Louis square off in the 2 p.m. contest.

• NCAC honors Howard — Junior Maya Howard was recently named the North Coast Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week.

Howard got the Tigers off to a 2-0 start with wins over Wisconsin Lutheran, 64-53, and Luther, 78-67, last weekend in the Paul F. Knueppel Classic hosted by Wisconsin Lutheran. She averaged 18 ppg, 6.5 rpg and 4 apg.

Howard also shot 52 percent from the floor and recorded four steals. Her 25 points against Luther was a career-high.