Luersman’s double-double leads Women’s Basketball to 54-43 win over Marietta to open OAC play

By Wes Mayberry

ADA — Junior Kristen Luersman (Fort Jennings) recorded her third career double-double to lead the Ohio Northern women's basketball team to a 54-43 win over Marietta on Saturday at the ONU Sports Center.

The Polar Bears improve to 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the Ohio Athletic Conference while dropping the Pioneers to 4-2, 1-1.

Luersman finished with game-highs of 16 points and 11 rebounds while adding three assists, one steal and one block to her stat line.

Senior Brynn Serbin (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) finished with 14 points, nine rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block.

Freshman Mackenzie Suprano (Cutler/Waterford) made a trio of 3-pointers and scored a career-high 11 points off the bench while adding five rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block.

Hannah Schill and Paige Tolson scored seven points each to lead the Pioneers.

Marietta opened the game on a 7-2 run capped by a 3-pointer from Schill, but ONU answered with a 13-0 run over the final seven-plus minutes of the first quarter for a 15-7 lead.

The Polar Bears extended that run into the second period with layups from Luersman and Serbin and a 3-pointer from Suprano for a 22-7 edge.

A Tolson layup with 4:43 left in the second quarter gave the Pioneers their first points since 7:38 remained in the opening quarter, and ONU later took a 28-17 lead into halftime.

Marietta pulled within seven, 30-23, early in the third quarter, but a Luersman 3-pointer with 5:25 remaining extended the lead back out to double digits, 35-23.

The Pioneers cut the deficit to four, 35-31, on an Adi Hill layup with 2:02 left in the third before Serbin responded with a triple with two seconds remaining to send ONU into the final period up 38-31.

An and-1 from sophomore Abi Akamine (Lahaina, Hawaii/Lahainaluna) extended the lead to 12, 47-35, and a Suprano 3-pointer put the Polar Bears up 52-35 with 3:44 left en route to the victory.

Ohio Northern made 23-of-59 field goals for 39% and was 7-of-19 from 3-point range for 36.8%, while MC made 17-of-61 field goals for 27.9% and was 2-of-17 from beyond the arc for 11.8%.

ONU was 1-of-1 from the free-throw line for 100%, and Marietta was 7-of-8 for 87.5%.

The Polar Bears out-rebounded the Pioneers by a 45-34 margin.

Northern returns to action on Wednesday, hosting Ohio Athletic Conference foe Wilmington at 7 p.m.