TIFFIN, Ohio - A 24-13 run in the third quarter proved to be the difference in an 83-73 loss for the Slippery Rock University women's basketball team on the road at Tiffin University Saturday afternoon.
 
The non-conference loss drops The Rock's record to 2-5 on the season while the Dragons improve to 4-5 in 2019-20 with the victory.
 
The evenly matched Rock and Dragons traded baskets for the majority of the first and second quarters as Tiffin took a scant four-point, 40-36, into halftime.
 
However, the third quarter belonged to the Dragons as Tiffin came out of the break on a game-changing 24-13 spurt that pushed its lead over Slippery Rock out to 64-49 heading into the fourth quarter.
 
Slippery Rock spent the fourth quarter chipping away at Tiffin's lead, eventually trimming the margin down to eight points at 81-73 with 57 seconds left in regulation. However, Tiffin made a pair of free throws down the stretch while forcing SRU into turnovers in The Rock's final two possessions on the way to its 10-point win.
 
Slippery Rock finished the game shooting 37.1 percent from the field (26-of-70), 20.0 percent from 3-point territory (5-of-25) and 80 percent from the free throw line (16-of-20). SRU committed just 13 turnovers Saturday, its second-lowest total of the year.
 
Tiffin shot 43.5 percent from the field (27-of-62), 28.6 percent from 3-point (8-of-28) and 75 percent from the free throw line (21-of-28). The Dragons held a +11 rebounding margin (47-36) over SRU and scored 21 of their points on fast breaks.
 
Brooke Hinderliter led four Rock players in double figures with a team-best 18 points to go with five rebounds, four assists and one block. Hinderliter's 18-point game moved her into eighth place in Slippery Rock history for points in a career with 1,325. She is just five points away from surpassing Melissa McKavish for seventh place all-time.
 
Daeja Quick and Madison Johnson added 14 points apiece with Quick also accounting for five rebounds, five assists and one steal. LeeAnn Gibson rounded out SRU's leading scorers with 11 points in addition to seven rebounds and a pair of steals.
 
Anyah Curd chipped in nine points, four rebounds, one block and one steal over 14 minutes played while Karington Ketterer had four points and six rebounds.

Aarion Nichols paced Tiffin with a game-high 21 points in the win.
 
Slippery Rock returns to its Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference schedule when it plays at Shepherd University 1 p.m. Dec. 7.




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