Reinoehl and Dawson's Double-Doubles Lift Akron To A 64-53 Win Over Purdue Fort Wayne

Friday, November 15

Akron, OH

4:30 PM

University of Akron

2-0,0-0MAC

Purdue Fort Wayne

2-2,0-0Summit League

Purdue Fort Wayne

Akron

Reinoehl and Dawson's Double-Doubles Lift Akron To A 64-53 Win Over Purdue Fort Wayne

November 15 | Women's Basketball

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AKRON, Ohio– Behind the strength of a pair of double-doubles from senior Haliegh Reinoehl (Westfield, Ind.) and junior Jordyn Dawson (Huntington, W. Va.), the Akron women's basketball team battled to a 64-53 win over Purdue Fort Wayne in the 2019-20 home opener and first contest of the 2019 Akron Classic inside James A. Rhodes Arena on Friday afternoon.

Reinoehl and Dawson combined to score 37 points and pulled down 24 of the Zips game-high 41 team rebounds. Reineohl led all players with a game-high 19 points, 10 defensive rebounds, and three offensive caroms on her way to her second straight double-double performance. Dawson notched a career-high 18 points and 11 rebounds to record her first career double-double in an Akron uniform.

As an offense, the Zips shot at a 42.3-percent clip from the field (22-of-52) and went 4-for-17 from long range. UA shot a game-high 53.8-percent from the floor in the fourth quarter, while recording a 75-percent clip (3-for-4) from distance in the second quarter and knocked down 13-of-15 free-throw attempts in the fourth.

Senior Shayna Harmon (Ashville, Ohio) turned in a game- and season-high five assists, while as a unit, Akron assisted on 10 of its 22 field goals. Defensively, the Zips forced 19 turnovers, recorded eight steals, scored 20 points off turnovers, and 12 points on a fast break.

The contest between Akron and the Mastodons was a battle of quarters with PFW owning the third quarter, but the Zips winning the first quarter (13-12), second quarter (15-6), and the team's best period of the contest, the fourth (27-18).

It was a tight first quarter with Akron taking the slight +1 advantage following 10 minutes of play. After the Zips shrugged off a slow start to the game, UA used a 6-0 run and shot 5-for-12 from the floor to win the quarter. Dawson entered the contest off the bench for the Zips and provided a physical spark on the offensive end of the floor scoring five points.

Akron went to work around the perimeter in the second quarter shooting a season-high 75-percent in the stanza. Senior Alyssa Clay (Indianapolis, Ind.) splashed a pair of triples while Reinoehl went 1-for-2 from distance that highlighted a 13-3 run in the final five minutes of the first half to take a 28-20 lead into the locker room.

While the Zips went to work on offense, Fort Wayne struggled from the floor as the Zips tightened its defensive grasp. The Mastodons shot just 2-for-13 from the field and turned the ball over five times.

Fort Wayne used the halftime break to regroup offensively which turned into a 6-0 run in favor of the Mastodons in the first two minutes. The Zips truly never found a rhythm in the period allowing PFW to work its way back into the contest, tie the game back up at 33-33 with 2:31 left in the contest, and pulled within two points (37-35) heading into the fourth quarter.

For the second consecutive contest, the Akron Zips played their best basketball in the final 10 minutes of the game.

The Mastodons grabbed its first lead of the game since the first quarter with 8:52 left to play in the fourth before the Zips put their foot on the gas pedal and sped away with the game. UA outscored PFW 25-11 in the final 8:23 of the quarter with Dawson and Reinoehl scoring 16 of Akron's 25 points.

In game one of the Akron Classic between No. 24 Michigan and Kent State, the Wolverines defeated the Golden Flashes, 88-53. Kent State and Purdue Fort Wayne square off on day two of the Classic starting at 12 p.m.

In less than 24 hours, Akron returns to the court inside James A. Rhodes Arena for game two of the 2019 Akron Classic. The Zips square-off in a BIG contest against Big Ten opponent, No. 24 Michigan, on Saturday, Nov. 16, at 2:30 p.m.