TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (March 23, 2018) – The recipe may have been different but the sweet smell of success was the still the same as the No. 20-ranked Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology women's basketball team defeated Hanover College 76-73 in the first semifinal game of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship Tournament on the Engineers' home Hulbert Arena court.

Rose-Hulman (23-3), the regular-season HCAC champion, advances to play the winner of No. 2 seed Transylvania University and No. 3 seed Bluffton University semifinal contest in Saturday's 7 p.m. championship game.

The fact that this game came down to the final seconds before deciding a winner shouldn't be surprising. Both of the regular-season duels between the two rivals had Hanover leading until the fourth quarter before Rose-Hulman came away with victories.

This time, Rose-Hulman led throughout, leading 26-20 after the first quarter and 45-31 at halftime. But the No. 4-seeded Panthers started to make things interesting with a 24-point third quarter to close the gap at 60-55 heading into the final 10 minutes. The gap narrowed to three points on two different occasions down the stretch and Kristin Mills' 3-point field goal made it an one-point game, 74-73, with 10 seconds remaining. However, Rose-Hulman guard Abby Bromenschenkel made two free throws with eight seconds left and the Engineers won as Hanover guard Avery Chezem missed a 3-pointer before the final buzzer.

Rose-Hulman had a balanced offensive effort as five players scored double digits, with two of them coming from the bench. Alyzia Dilworth had a team-high 15 points, with three 3-point field goals, while fellow guard Lindsey Fagerberg (making 6 of 10 field goals) and forward Ally Bromenschenkel each added 13 points. Taylor Graham and Chiarra Franklin both had a dozen points.

Forward Alexis Nall had a game-high 29 points and 11 rebounds to lead Hanover (18-8). She made 12 of her 20 field goals, with most of the made shots coming in helping lead the second-half comeback bid. Guard Claire Cromer had 16 points and forward Maleha Motter scored eight of her 11 points in the third quarter.

INSIDE THE GAME

Back-to-back rebound baskets by Rose-Hulman forward Ally Bromenschenkel and a layup by reserve forward Chiarra Franklin kept the surging Hanover team at bay in the final stretch drive. Bromenschenkel's second put-back gave the Engineers a 71-66 edge with 2:07 remaining in the game, and Franklin's basket 16 seconds later moved the tournament hosts ahead by seven points, 73-66. The Panthers would get as close as one point, 74-73, on a 3-pointer by Kristin Mills with 10 seconds remaining. Guard Abby Bromenschenkel converted two free throws with eight seconds left to build the three-point winning edge as Hanover guard Avery Cheezem missed a 3-pointer in a last-second attempt to tie the game.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Hanover forward Alexis Nall scored a career-high 29 points, making 12 of her 20 field goals. She also had 11 rebounds for the double-double performance.
• The Engineers had five players in double scoring figures, with none of those teammates having more than 15 points.
• Rose-Hulman out-rebounded Hanover by a 46-to-30 margin.
• Hanover shot 50% from the field (7 of 14) in the fourth quarter and made 44.8% of its shots for the game (26 of 58).
• Hanover had 20 assists on its 26 total field goals; Rose-Hulman had 18 assists on its 27 made shots.

TAKING NOTE

• Rose-Hulman has now won 33 straight games against Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference opponents.
• Rose-Hulman has won 21 straight games and is 15-0 in 2018; the team's last loss came in a 60-59 setback to nationally ranked Illinois Wesleyan University on Nov. 26.
• Rose-Hulman is 23-3 for the season; Hanover's season ends at 18-9; three of the Panthers' nine losses came to the Engineers.
• Rose-Hulman moved up three spots to be ranked No. 20 in this week's D3Hoops.com Top 25 poll, the highest national ranking for any women's athletic team in school history.

TOURNAMENT TIDBITS

• Rose-Hulman will be playing in the HCAC championship game for the third straight season. The team defeated Transylvania University 50-40 in last year's finale in Terre Haute, Ind., while losing to Bluffton University 52-46 in the 2016 title game.
• Rose-Hulman now has a 6-8 all-time record in HCAC tournament play.

WHAT'S NEXT

The top-seeded Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (23-3) will play either No. 2 seed Transylvania University or No. 3 seed Bluffton University in Saturday's 7 p.m. championship game of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament, being played on the Engineers' home court. The tournament winner will represent the league in the NCAA Division III national tournament.

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