NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. – The Fightin' Engineers tipped off the conference season with a 78-63 defeat to the Manchester Spartans.
 
Katelyn Fennell knocked down a three-pointer to open the game, and Emma Schipp added a tip-in layup to take an early 5-4 lead. The Spartans would then go up a 12-0 run, which ended on a midrange basket by Sophia Reese in her first game back from injury.
 
Julia Meyer converted a three-pointer of her own late in the first, but Manchester extended their lead to 37-11 early in the second quarter.
 
Fennell added another basket on a tough and one layup, before Kaia Peterson scored on a layup on the following possession. Schipp added a layup with a minute remaining in the half, where Manchester concluded the half up 46-21.
 
Both teams traded baskets to start the third, with Schipp hitting a mid-range jumper and Fennell scoring on a layup.
 
Peterson would take over in the quarter, as she scored mid-range jump shots on back-to-back possessions. She followed that up by scoring consecutive layups, before a Meyer three-pointer right before the buzzer cut the lead to 72-41.
 
The Fightin' Engineers would dominate the fourth quarter, where they outscored Manchester 22-6. A steal by Peterson led to a fastbreak layup by Reese, before Schipp added an and one layup on Peterson's assist.
 
Rose-Hulman's defense recorded four steals in less than a two-minute span late in the game. Anaya Hawkins' steal led to a fast break layup by Emilia Diaz, and a steal from María Godoy Rodriguez resulted in a three-pointer from Meyer.
 
Godoy Rodriguez recorded another two steals immediately afterwards, where she went coast to coast for a fastbreak layup with 40 seconds remaining.
 
Meyer converted her fourth three-pointer of the game on Rose-Hulman's final possession to cap off the game with a score of 78-63.
 
Kaia Peterson scored 14 points on 6-8 shooting from the floor. She added three assists, two steals, and blocked one shot.
 
Julia Meyer tied Peterson with a team-high 14 points. She shot 5-9 from the field, 4-6 from three-point range, and added two steals.
 
Katelyn Fennell put up 12 points on 5-9 shooting, where she went 1-3 from beyond the arc. She hauled in four rebounds, dished out three assists, and blocked one shot.
 
Emma Schipp recorded nine points and seven rebounds, while shooting 4-10 from the floor.
 
María Godoy Rodriguez recorded a game-high three steals, while Anaya Hawkins accumulated three rebounds and three assists.
 
Rose-Hulman will return home for the first time since November 11, as they go up against the Bluffton Beavers on Saturday, December 6, at 2 PM.