conference

team-building experience for the girls on and off of the court.

“I thought the team got to really gel and spend time together,” Averkamp said. “Those trips are great to compete, but they’re also great for team building. I think the closer we get off the court, the better we’re going to keep getting on the court.”

Back from a week off for Christmas, the Chargers faced Division I Eastern Michigan in an exhibition game on Dec. 28, for a competitive 61-76 loss.

“We played with them tight for about three and a half quarters,” Averkamp said. “It's a different ballgame, but I think it really allowed us to gain some confidence and really trust that what we're doing can be successful at a high level.”

The Chargers then began a three-game win streak, defeating Madonna University, Roosevelt University, and Northwood University at home.

Mills said the team’s 7976 victory against G-MAC newcomer Northwood was one of the most significant for the Chargers over break.

“They just came into the conference this year,” Mills said. “Our conference is really competitive, and you have to be able to play your best basketball on any given night to win. I think it was a very important game just to kind of show them what the GMAC is all about.”

After a 72-60 loss against the Malone University Pioneers Jan. 7, the Chargers reclaimed their court with a 63-76 win against the Ursuline Lions.

Mills sank a 3-pointer with 7:24 to play in the third quarter against Ursuline to hit her 1000 career point milestone. She also scored a total of 14 points and 12 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season.

Hillsdale stepped up defensively in its second game against Ohio Dominican Jan. 14, holding the Panthers at 35.7% shooting for a 78-57 victory. According to Averkamp, this win showcased the team’s progress over the break.

“I think we've learned a lot about ourselves in that first game against ODU,” Averkamp said. “And the second time out, we really were focused and fired up to play, and we were ready to compete. I'm really proud of them for that.”

The Chargers are on the road again this week and will face G-MAC second place team Kentucky Wesleyan tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. before playing Trevecca Nazarene again Jan. 21 at 2 p.m.

“We’ve got a huge week this week back on the road,” Averkamp said. “I think it's gonna really define a lot about our team, and I'm excited to go compete with this group. And that's the big thing is that we have such a good group, and it's fun to go out there and compete when you have kids who buy into what you're doing.” happy to feel good in my races and go one, two, three in the 100 breaststroke with Joanna and Hannah.”

Chargers went one and two in the 1000 yard freestyle, with sophomore Elise Mason in first (11:02.35) and senior Sarah Clark in second (11:23.53). Junior Sarah Pataniczek came in a close fourth with a time of 11:34.03.

Taylor topped the 50 yard freestyle event with a time of 25.10, closely followed by freshman Julianna Weir who swam a 25.43.

Clifford won the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 58.44. Pataniczek finished third with a 1:00.69.

In the 100 yard backstroke, Holmes finished second with a time of 1:01.00, just six hundredths of a second behind the Saginaw swimmer in first (1:00.94).

The Chargers saw another close finish in the meet’s closing event, the 200 yard freestyle relay. The team of sophomore Lilly Golladay, senior Leah Tunney, Weir, and Clifford finished in 1:40.76 while the first place Saginaw team swam a 1:40.70.

The team has one more opportunity to race before the conference championships that take place in the second week of February.

“To make sure we are prepared, we are continuing to work hard at each practice, keeping the morale high as we unite around the goal of winning a fourth consecutive conference championship,” Dickhudt said. “This year we are expecting some tough competition, but we are confident in the work we have put in and the mental toughness we have.”

This weekend, the team will travel to Stevens Point, Wisconsin, for a two day meet against University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

Kalthoff averaged 21.5 points and 7.5 rebounds on 71.4% shooting from the floor during the week’s two games, including a career-high 29 points in a win over Northwood.

“I sent a text message to Pete, letting him know how proud I am of him,” Tharp said. “I thought that was a well-deserved honor, he’s done so many good things for us, finishing around the rim and blocking shot, he’s a capable 3-point shooter, so I’m proud of him.”

The team has gotten back on track after suffering its only loss of the season on New Year’s Eve to Lake Erie, winning four straight home games.

Losses by G-MAC foes Ashand and Malone, give Hillsdale a game-and-a-half lead over every other team in the conference.

“Since November and December, we kind of discovered that we’re the hunted, and every team really wants to play their best game against us, and that’s what we want too, that’s what makes meaningful games,” Kalthoff said.

Though the four-point loss in Lake Erie kept the team from tying the best start in program history, senior guard Cole Nau said the team has learned a lot from the game.

“We gave up two big threes late, one of them was because there was a ball screen between Eric and I and there was a little confusion on what our coverage was, if we were switching it or if it was a show, and they hit a three, and later in the game when they hit a three, that was more confusion, so that’s not going to happen again,” Nau said.

Unlike past years, the team has been defined offensively by balanced scoring, with four players ranking top 21 in the conference in points per game, but none in the top 10.

Kalthoff is joined by fifthyear senior guard Jack Gohlke, senior guard Kyle Goessler, and sophomore forward Joe Reuter who all average at least 11 points per game.

“I don’t think we’re a team of superstars, I think we’re just being a team that is playing for each other, and I appreciate what they’re doing, we ask them to continue to do that,” Tharp said.

The Chargers rank top 10 in the nation among Division II teams in four team statistics, including two that rank in the top three. Scoring defense and assist-to-turnover ratio are ninth and sixth respectively, and opposing 3-point percentage and fewest turnovers committed are second and third respectively.

Nau said those statistics define the team perfectly, as the Chargers are team-oriented and defensively-minded.

Hillsdale’s defense was on display against the Ohio Dominican Panthers in the team’s last game. The Chargers held ODU to just 36% from the floor, and 23% from outside. The Panthers made just three threes all game, and collected only three team assists while committing 12 turnovers.

Three of the Panthers’ five starters shot a combined 1-of13 for two points, while the team’s leading scorer, Zach Szul shot just 4-of-16 from the field. Nau led the way in the team’s defense against Szul, while finishing with eight points, five rebounds, and three steals.

“It’s just always a one-onone battle, it’s easy to say ‘oh Cole shut him down,’ but you really watch the game and there were a couple of times where he made a good move and Walt came over on one and contested him, I remember one where Pete contested him, there was a switch between Kyle and I, it’s really a team effort,” Nau said.

The team will play three of its next four games on the road before a key three-game home stand.

“We’ve got to be better defensively and rebounding the ball consistently, I’m worried about us rebounding the basketball, and offensively we have to continue to finish around the rim a little bit better than what we have,” Tharp said. “We’re just focusing on a talented Kentucky Wesleyan and a tough Trevecca team.”