Franklin, Ind. – Madison Kellione scored a season-high 26 points to lead the No. 12/18 Transylvania women's basketball team to a 72-62 win over the Franklin College Grizzlies in their conference opener on Wednesday evening at the Spurlock Center.
Transylvania won its first Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference matchup of the year to move to 6-0 overall and 1-0 in HCAC play while the Grizzlies fell to 2-3 overall and 0-1 in conference play.
Kellione was aided by Dasia Thornton, who posted a career-high 19 points on Wednesday as the Pioneers turned in another surgical performance on the road.
The Pioneers overcame a four-point deficit at the end of the first quarter to lock down Franklin in the second quarter, 18-10 for a 34-30 halftime lead. Kellione erupted for seven straight points for the Pioneers in the midst of a game-changing 13-1 run over the final five minutes of the half.
Transylvania heated up from the field in the second half, shooting 54 percent over the final 20 minutes of game play to stay firmly ahead for the duration of the evening. Kellione and Thornton combined for 13 of Transy's 20 points in the third quarter as the Pioneers took a 54-45 lead into the final quarter of play.
The Pioneers closed down shop at Franklin thanks to a pair of triples by Kellione and Kennedi Stacy, the latter of which provided the Pioneers with a 64-52 advantage with under five minutes to go in regulation. Stacy answered another Franklin score with a late-game layup, and a close-range shot from Thornton with 1:54 left sealed the deal as the Pioneers soared to a 70-58 advantage.
Thornton made a season-high 8 for 16 field goals and added eight rebounds and one steal in 33 minutes of play. Kellione featured in all but 27 seconds of gameplay and finished the night with seven rebounds, three assists, and four steals to go with her game-high 26 points.
The Pioneers collected 12 steals on the night as Grace Shope, Kennedy Harris, and Sadie Wurth each committed two thefts apiece.
Transylvania returns to play on Saturday as the Pioneers host the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Fightin' Engineers at 1:00 p.m. in their HCAC home opener at the Beck Center.
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