DELAWARE, Ohio - January 5, 2022 – Hiram women's basketball fell to the Ohio Wesleyan Battling Bishops, 72-45, in their first game of the new year on Wednesday at Branch Rickey Arena.
 
Ohio Wesleyan got off to a hot start, opening up an early, first-quarter lead with an 8-0 run to open the period. Hiram pulled within four, halving the Battling Bishops lead on a pair of jumpers by Madison Branch. But OWU extended their lead out to as many as 13, ending the first quarter in front, 23-12.
 
The Battling Bishops continued their hot start in the second quarter, outscoring the Terriers, 18-6, to take a 41-18 lead at the half, and adding 19 more in the third quarter to take a 60-25 lead heading into the fourth.
 
And while the Terriers outscored the Battling Bishops, 20-12, in the final frame, OWU's lead proved to be too much, and Hiram fell, 72-45.
 
Hiram falls to 3-9 (0-5 NCAC) with the loss, while OWU moves to 10-3 (3-1 NCAC) with the win.
 
Maddie Rakestraw led the Terriers with 17 points, while Branch and Haley Thompson joined the sophomore guard in double figures, scoring 12 and 10 points apiece.
 
Rakestraw also paced the Terriers on the glass with six rebounds, while Thompson added a team-high four assists and career-high eight steals.
 
The Terriers next return home for a back-to-back against a pair of North Coast Athletic Conference foes, beginning on Saturday, Jan. 8 at 1 p.m. vs. Wittenberg.