ASHLAND, OH - After a third quarter that saw the Panthers outscore Ashland 14-13, the number two ranked Eagles pulled away in the fourth, starting out on an 11-1 run to win the game by a final score of 68-47. 

Ashland moves to 11-0 (5-0 G-MAC), while Wesleyan falls to 7-4 (4-1 G-MAC). 

It was a back-and-forth battle to start the game off, with Jordyn Barga hitting a layup to give Wesleyan an 8-7 lead midway through the opening frame. After an Ashland run, Wesleyan went on a run of their own, scoring six straight points and cutting the lead to one thanks to two layups from Tahlia Walton and a few free throws from Reeva Hammelman. The Eagles hit a three near the end of the quarter and led 18-14 after one. 

Thanks to a layup from Shiya Hoosier the Panthers were down just two a minute and a half into the second quarter. Ashland used an 11-3 run to extend their lead to 29-19 with just a few minutes to go in the half. Despite going down double-digits to arguably the best team in the country, Wesleyan didn't give up, using buckets from Hammelman and Barga to keep the game within reach. Ashland went into the break holding a 38-24 lead. 

Nearing the end of the third quarter and down by 17, Wesleyan fought back at the end, with Shaylee McDonald and Hammelman each hitting free throws before Jordyn Barga stole the ball and went the length of the court to hit a layup at the buzzer and cut the lead to 51-38 with 10 minutes to play. 

Ashland opened the final quarter on a big 11-1 run and didn't look back, outscoring Wesleyan 17-9 to win the game by 21 points. 

Wesleyan shot just 18-54 (33.3%) from the field and 2-15 (13.3%) from three. Ashland on the other hand shot 23-58 (39.7%) from the field and 6-25 (24%) from behind the arc. Ashland hit 16 free throws compared to just nine from the Panthers. 

Jordyn Barga was the only Panther in double figures as she finished with 12 points on 5-9 shooting. Barga also led with eight rebounds, while Shaylee McDonald notched two assists. 

Wesleyan now gets a bit of a break as they won't be in action again until they host Oakland City on Friday, December 30th. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. CT.

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