NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Albion College women's basketball team capped off their regular season campaign with a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association victory over St. Mary's College (Ind.) on Thursday, Feb. 19 inside the Angela Athletic & Wellness Complex. The Britons (20-5, 12-4 MIAA) captured their twentieth win of the season, outshining the Belles (9-15, 6-9 MIAA), 71-59. For Albion, this is its first 20-win season since the 2007-08 season when they finished with a record of 22-5.

The Purple and Gold started the game on a cold note, shooting 3-of-14 from the field after one-quarter of play. Meanwhile, the Belles created a 5-0 cushion early to which they extended to nine as they closed the first period with a 20-11 edge.

Albion elevated its play in the second quarter outscoring St. Mary's 21-10. The Britons managed to bridge the gap at 28 thanks to a jumper from junior Rain Hinton with 2:02 remaining in the first half. Then with less than ten seconds left before the horn, senior Emily Bernas dished to Hinton for the score to take their first lead of the game, 32-30.

Sophomore Amanda Larson brought some energy to the Britons at the top of the third period registering two rebounds (one offensive, one defensive), an assist, and a layup in less than three minutes. Later on, a basket by freshman Angelina Mendieta expanded Albion's advantage to 13 points at the 1:56 mark of the third quarter.

The Britons continued to shoot efficiently in the fourth quarter, highlighted by an and-one conversion by Hinton and a triple by Bernas to go ahead by 18. Despite this, the Belles did not shy away in the final period of play outscoring the Britons 19-18. Yet the Purple and Gold would prevail, making five free throws in the final minute to hold off St. Mary's, 71-59.

Freshman Elena Welker was ubiquitous for the Britons, recording ten points, four assists, one block, and one steal. Her performance marks the first time she's obtained an assist, block, and steal while scoring in double-digits. Bernas put up 12 points shooting 2-6 from beyond-the-arc and grabbed eight rebounds on the night. Hinton paced the team in points, earning 30 and collecting ten rebounds to go along with her three steals. The Woodlan High School product's performance marks her sixth double-double of the season. Senior Evelyn Wischmeyer reached a historic milestone as her two points earned her a spot in the program's 1000 points club. The Lake Orion native is now the third player to reach this milestone.

The Britons concluded the night shooting 27-69 (39.1%) from the field, 3-14 (21.4%) from three-point range, and 14-27 (51.9%) from the free-throw line. Albion took advantage of St. Mary's errors scoring 28 points off of turnovers while also outscoring the Belles in second-chance points (19), bench points (14), and points in the paint (36).

"Happy to get a road win on their senior day," noted Head Coach Doreen Carden. "I thought we had a good second half and got some good looks inside for Rain."
The Albion College women's basketball team is now locked-in as the three-seed in the MIAA Tournament. The Britons will host against the sixth-seed (yet to be determined) on Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m.

Get the latest information on the team by following @AlbionWBB on Twitter and Instagram. General athletics news can also be found at GoBrits on Twitter, AlbionAthletics on Instagram and Albion College Athletics on Facebook.

Joe and Julie Serra have given a $5 million leadership gift to launch a fundraising initiative to make two dreams a reality at Albion College. The first is a newly expanded fitness and student activity facility at the site of the current Dow Recreation and Wellness Center. The second is a new or renovated competition facility for the volleyball, men's basketball and women's basketball teams that currently call Kresge Gymnasium home.

The College is continuing to raise funds in support of both projects. To learn more, call 517/629-0446 or email advancement@albion.edu