NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. – The Manchester University women's basketball team was able to muscle past rival Anderson University 7-1-56 in its mid-week Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference contest inside of Stauffer-Wolfe Arena on Wednesday January 5.

The Black & Gold offense erupted in the opening minutes of the game – the Spartans jumped out to 15-0 lead just four minutes into the contest. Manchester shot 6-7 from the field, including 3-3 from three-point territory to begin the game. The run was highlighted by a pair of three-pointers by senior Miranda Bieghler (Plainfield, Ind./South Putnam), as well as baskets by Hannah Lindsey (Speedway, Ind./Speedway) and Macy Miller (Huntertown, Ind./Carroll).

Anderson opened the game shooting 0-6 from the floor, however, the visiting Ravens closed the quarter on a 14-3 run.

Manchester's offense cooled in the 2nd quarter as the Black & Gold were limited to just nine points. Anderson limited Manchester to 3-14 shooting from the floor. The Ravens would outscore MU 15-9 in the frame to grab a narrow 29-27 advantage at the break.

Momentum swung back in favor of the Spartans in the 3^rd quarter as Manchester held its HCAC rival to just 30.8 percent (4-13) shooting in the period. The Black & Gold outscored the Ravens 18-9 in the frame to regain control of the contest.

The Spartans came up clutch at the free throw in Wednesday's victory over Anderson. Manchester would seal its third conference win after going 10-14 from the line in the 4^th quarter. Overall, the Spartans finished 27-34 at the free throw line – good for 79.4 percent.

Junior Hannah Lindsey scored a season-high and career-best 21 points against the Ravens. Lindsey finished 4-11 from the field, 3-6 from three-point territory, and was a perfect 10-10 at the free throw line. Lindsey also added six rebounds. Senior Macy Miller added 20 points after shooting 5-8 from the floor and 10-14 from the charity stripe. Miller added eight boards and blocked a career-high five shots. Seniors Bridget Nash (Carmel, Ind./Bishop Chatard) and Miranda Bieghler both scored in double figures with 13 points on Wednesday night. Bieghler added nine rebounds and five assists in the win.

Lexi Dellinger led Anderson with 20 points. Payton Moore added a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds for AU.
The Spartans outrebounded Anderson 39-34 on Wednesday night. The Black & Gold also converted 20 Anderson turnovers into 29 points.

Manchester improved to 6-5, 3-1 HCAC on the season. The Spartans are scheduled to host Mt. St. Joseph University inside of Stauffer-Wolfe Arena on Saturday January 8 at 1 p.m.

Anderson fell to 5-7, 2-3 HCAC on the season.