HIRAM, Ohio - January 26, 2022 – Propelled by a 47-point second half, Hiram women's basketball earned their first North Coast Athletic Conference win of the year, defeating the Allegheny College Gators, 72-66, on Wednesday evening inside Price Gymnasium.
 
Cici Bright got things started for the Terriers with a layup 22 seconds in, kick-starting a back-and-forth first period that featured four ties, two lead changes and neither team leading by more than six.
 
All knotted up at 10, back-to-back buckets by Selena Vargas and Maddie Rakestraw made it a 14-10 Hiram lead, before two more jumpers by Madison Branch following an Allegheny bucket made it 18-12 in favor of the Terriers.
 
Breanna Warner then sank a jumper with 20 seconds left in the first, and the Terriers took a four-point, 18-14 lead into the second quarter.
 
But after shooting 50 percent from the field in the first frame, Hiram went cold in the second quarter, as the Gators tied things up on Jenna Manke's layup, and took a 20-19 lead on Emily Lauer's jumper just under two minutes into the period.
 
A Gator three-pointer made it 23-19, as Allegheny built their largest lead of the first half, 25-19, with just over six minutes to play.
 
Both teams went scoreless for the next two and a half minutes, before Branch broke the scoreless stretch with two of her 16 points, cutting Allegheny's lead to four off an assist from Rakestraw.
 
However, the Gators brought their lead back out to six and eventually eight, taking a 33-25 lead into the locker room on Warner's jumper with 17 seconds left in the second quarter.
 
Branch and Vargas each led the Terriers with eight points at the half.
 
The Gators quickly built their largest lead of the game, 35-25, with Alexis Caldwell's triple to open the third, before the Terriers made their run. Down by 10, Hiram outscored Allegheny, 8-0, over the next three minutes to pull within two, 35-33, with 6:26 left in the third.
 
Taylor Tully's layup slowed Hiram's run, but a jumper by Branch, free throw by Haley Thompson and a made layup by Vargas off a free-throw miss gave the Terriers their first lead since the second quarter, 38-37, with 4:15 remaining in the third.
 
Vargas then added another jumper to make it 40-37, as the Terriers used another run, this time a 9-0 run, to take a 44-37 lead at the 2:00 minute mark in the third.
 
Back-to-back buckets by Lauer though cut Hiram's lead back down to four, and the Terriers headed into the final period up 45-41, after outscoring the Gators, 20-8 in the third.
 
The Gators quickly tied things up and took a lead of their own to open the fourth, but Hiram responded with a pair of buckets by Iyana Smith to pull back ahead by one. Up 49-48, Vargas sank a crucial layup off an offensive rebound, one of seven offensive boards on the day, and Taylor Valaitis knocked down a pair of free throws to make it a five-point game, 53-48, with 6:22 to play.
 
Allegheny again pulled within one though, this time on a pair of Warner jumpers, but again Hiram had an answer. A layup by Branch made it 55-52, and after Warner again made it a one-point game, Valaitis sank another pair of free throws to put Hiram in front by three.
 
Down the stretch, the Gators kept things close, pulling within one multiple times, but each time, Hiram had an answer, keeping Allegheny from taking the lead.
 
Up by two, an and-one by Bright with just under three to play made it a four-point lead,  but this time, the Gators tied the game after a Terrier turnover, equalizing on Caldwell's jumper to make it 62-all.
 
Bright and Caldwell traded buckets to again even the score at 64-all before Vargas answered on the other end to give Hiram a 66-64 lead with 1:17 remaining.
 
Up by two, Hiram couldn't extend its lead on the next possession but forced a tough shot on the other end which Caldwell couldn't connect, forcing the Gators to foul. And Thompson and Rakestraw made all six of their free throws down the stretch to close out the 72-66 Hiram victory.
 
With the win, Hiram moves to 5-11 (1-7 NCAC), picking up its first conference win, while the Gators drop to 4-12 (1-7 NCAC) with the loss.
 
Vargas led the way for the Terriers with her fourth-career double-double, tallying a team-high 18 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Branch joined the sophomore in double figures with 16 points, while Branch and Rakestraw each added four assists.
 
Defensively, Hiram tallied 11 steals, led by Rakestraw's four, while Thompson notched a pair of blocks.
 
As a team, Hiram shot 43.1 percent from the field and scored 20 second-chance points off 19 offensive rebounds.
 
The game featured seven ties and eight lead changes, the last of which occurred with 1:46 remaining in the fourth quarter.
 
Hiram will look to keep things rolling, looking for their third-straight win when they host The College of Wooster on Saturday, Jan. 29 at 1 p.m. inside Price Gymnasium.