Women’s Basketball wins 53-50 at #8 Trine (Ind.)

By Wes Mayberry

ANGOLA, Ind. — Clutch shots from sophomore Abi Akamine (Lahaina, Hawaii/Lahainaluna) and freshman Mackenzie Suprano (Cutler/Waterford) helped the Ohio Northern women's basketball team secure a 53-50 victory over No. 8 Trine (Ind.) on Saturday at the MTI Center.

The Polar Bears improve to 4-1 overall while dropping the Thunder to 3-2.

Senior Brynn Serbin (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) led the way for Northern with 14 points, nine rebounds and four assists.

Suprano came off the bench and finished with a career-high 10 points.

Sophomore Brooke Allen (Woodville/Woodmore) tallied eight points, four rebounds and four steals.

Junior Kristen Luersman (Fort Jennings) finished with six points and six rebounds, and junior Grace Dean (Avon/Lake) added six points and three rebounds.

Addison Hutson scored 17 points off the bench to lead the Thunder. Sam Underhill added nine points and eight rebounds.

ONU trailed 46-42 with 6:04 remaining, but a 3-pointer from Suprano kickstarted an 11-4 Polar Bear run to close the game.

A pair of free throws from Allen tied the score at 47-all with 3:34 left, and Serbin added two free throws for a 49-47 Northern lead with 1:29 remaining.

Trine answered with a 3-pointer from Hutson for a one-point edge with 31 seconds left, but a 2-point jumper from Akamine with 19 seconds remaining put ONU up 51-50.

Out of a timeout, Trine's Sierra Hinds missed a 3-point shot, and Serbin secured the rebound. The ball found its way into the hands of Suprano, who went 2-for-2 from the free-throw line for the three-point lead.

Another Trine timeout set up a last-second 3-point attempt from Alyssa Argyle that fell off the mark.

Led by five points from Serbin, the Polar Bears opened up a 13-6 lead at the end of the first quarter, and Northern took a 25-20 edge into halftime.

The Thunder came out strong in the second half, outscoring ONU 17-9 in the third quarter to take a 37-34 lead into the final period.

Ohio Northern made 18-of-50 field goals for 36% and was 4-of-15 from 3-point range for 26.7%, while TU made 16-of-49 field goals for 32.7% and was 10-of-32 from beyond the arc for 31.3%.

ONU was 13-of-15 from the free-throw line for 86.7%, and Trine was 8-of-12 for 66.7%.

The Polar Bears out-rebounded the Thunder by a 38-31 margin.

Northern returns to action on Saturday, opening Ohio Athletic Conference play at home against No. 19 Marietta at 4 p.m.