(ALLIANCE, Ohio) - Sophomore guard Kristen Richardson (Oxford/Talawanda) scored a career-high 24 points in pacing the No. 24 Capital University's women's basketball team to a 67-55 Ohio Athletic Conference victory over Mount Union College in Alliance.
The victory, Capital's fifth in a row, sends the Crusaders to 10-2 (5-1 OAC) while Mount Union falls to 5-8 (2-4 OAC) on the season.
Capital started the game on an 8-1 run, capped by a layup from junior guard Heather McAlpin (Cincinnati/Colerain). The Purple Raiders cut the deficit to 24-21 later in the first half, but the Crusaders outscored Mount Union 13-5 over the final 6:06 of the half to take a 37-26 lead at the break. Capital shot 57.7 percent in the first half, while Mount Union only hit 8-of-28 (28.6 percent) from the field.
Holding a nine point lead partway through the second half, the Crusaders went on a 9-0 spurt, with Richardson scoring the final five points of that run. Another Richardson bucket would give Capital its biggest advantage of the game, 67-48, in the closing minutes.
Richardson hit 10-of-16 shots and also tied a career high with four steals. Junior forward Caitlin Elsass (Batavia/Clermont Northeastern) added 17 points and five rebounds. Capital held a 46-10 advantage in points in the paint and also scored 23 points off of 19 Purple Raider turnovers.
Tiff Oster led Mount Union with 11 points and Haley Drayer scored 10 off the bench.
Capital hosts Ohio Northern at 3 p.m. Saturday in The Capital Center.