Women's Basketball closed out a perfect January with a win Saturday afternoon.

The Ravens defeated the Central Methodist University Eagles, 65-58, at home in Ralph Nolan Gym.

The Ravens held a halftime lead but saw it shrink to 2 points late in the third quarter, 45-43, as the Eagles scored a pair of baskets in the final minute of the period.

CMU opened the fourth quarter with another basket, leveling the score at 45-45. Makayla Baughman had a response for the Ravens, knocking down a corner 3-pointer to put the Ravens back up. Riley Bruggeman drilled another 3-pointer to extend the Ravens lead and finished with a game-high 19 points.

The Ravens kept the Eagles at arm's distance the remainder of the game, knocking down 9 free throws down the stretch to help earn the win.

Baughman finished with 9 points, sinking a pair of important 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. Diana Mozer and Kelli Storck also finished with 9 points for the Ravens. Kyla Fitzgerald had a team-high 8 rebounds.

The Ravens finished the day shooting 40.4% from the field while limiting the Eagles to 33.9% shooting. The Ravens were strong from behind the arc, making 10-24 from 3-point range.

A back-and-forth first quarter ended with the Ravens on top, 18-14, after Benedictine finished the quarter with a Bruggeman 3-pointer and then a Hattie Gros put-back right before the quarter buzzer.

The Eagles briefly took a lead late in the second quarter, but the Ravens answered. Kelli Storck scored off an assist from Nicole Storck, then Mozer knocked in a 3-pointer from the corner and Oen Deters followed that up with a basket to put the Ravens up 32-26.
CMU sank a pair of free throws and the teams went into the break with the Ravens leading 32-28. The Ravens made the needed plays in the second half to earn the win.

The Ravens close out January on an 8-game winning streak to improve to 17-5 overall, and 13-1 in Heart Conference play. Next up is another home game at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 4 against Culver-Stockton College.