By Brandy Bidlack, sports information assistant

The Bluffton University women's basketball team knocked off Heartland Conference rival Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology 58-51 on Saturday, January 8, in Founders Hall. Bluffton improved to 5-8 overall and 2-4 in the HCAC. Rose-Hulman dropped to 2-4 in the conference and 4-9 on the season.

Before the contest began, senior standout Kim Miller (Delphos/St. John's) was recognized for scoring her 1,000th point against #4 Washington (Mo.) on Dec. 30 when she also secured the number one spot for career assists at Bluffton University.

The Beavers struck first with a Lauren Hutton (New Riegel) jumper at the 18:37 mark. Less than two minutes later Miller drove to the hoop for two, giving Bluffton the early 4-2 lead. For the next five minutes, the Engineers went on a 6-3 rally before being slowed by a Brittany Lewis (Springfield/Shawnee) triple that put Bluffton back on top, 10-8.

Kylee Burkholder (West Unity/Hilltop) sank a pair of freebies at the 11:12 mark to solidify the Beaver edge. Junior Brittany Stegmaier (Garfield/Trinity) hit a jumper with 3:30 remaining in the first half, giving the Beavers a 21-13 advantage. With less than a minute to play, Lewis connected with Rachel LeFever (Orrville) for two, ending the half 26-16 in favor of the home team.

Junior forward Rachel Daman (Defiance/Tinora) sparked Bluffton with a layin just 40 seconds into the half. After six minutes of tough competition, the Beavers built their largest lead of the night (38-24) thanks to a Stegmaier trifecta.

RHIT trimmed the deficit to just five points following a Lauren Meadows layup at the 4:55 mark. However, the home team regained control and upped their edge to eight points, 57-49, thanks to a Miller layup. A pair of Engineer free throws cut the lead to seven as the Bluffton women picked up their second conference win of the season with a 58-51 victory over Rose-Hulman.

Brittany Stegmaier led the Beavers with 20 points and four rebounds. Hutton added 12 counters while teammate Brittany Lewis chipped in 10 points and dished out three assists. Kim Miller added four points and three steals while snatching six off the glass and dishing out five assists.

Bluffton hit 22-of-47 (46.8 percent) from the field, compared to 18-of-43 (41.9 percent) for RHIT. The Beavers went 4-of-13 (30.8 percent) from behind the arc, while the Engineers made 6-of-18 (33.3 percent). The home team knocked down 10-of-16 (62.5 percent) at the line, while the visitors were 9-of-16 (56.3 percent). Rose-Hulman won a close battle on the boards (30-25) and the home team turned it over eight fewer times (18-10).

The Bluffton University women's basketball team will resume Heartland Conference action when it travels to Manchester College on Wednesday, January 12. The battle between the Beavers and the Spartans is slated for 7:30 p.m.