The contest was knotted at 6-6 two minutes in, but the Bison rolled to an 18-8 advantage off the strength of a 12-2 spurt. Freshman guard Brooke Orange scored twice during the run, which was capped on a lay-up from sophomore forward Renee Brandenburg to give BC their 10-point cushion with 11 minutes left before halftime.
The Crusaders answered in a big way, as Kristen Richardson scored 11 during the 25-4 burst that put the visitors ahead 33-22 with 1:54 left before intermission. Bethany did respond by scoring eight of the half’s final 10 points, including a lay-up by junior guard Lisa Mitchell at the buzzer to cut the Capital lead to 35-30 at the break.
The second half saw the Crusaders use Bethany miscues to pull away. The Bison committed 22 of their 37 turnovers in the final period, which were converted into 26 Capital points.
The Bison offense was spearheaded by Mitchell, who netted 15 for her third consecutive game in double digits. Orange totaled 13, while senior forward Courtney Irwin registered nine points and 10 rebounds.
For Capital, Richardson finished with 17 markers and Daniele Manalac scored 13 for a Crusader offense that had 14 different players hit the scorebook.
The Bison will return to the hardwood Thursday when they host Franciscan (Ohio) University at 6 p.m. in the front end of a doubleheader with the men’s team.