Central Michigan University Athletics
Wednesday, February 5
Mount Pleasant, Mich.
6:30 p.m.
Central Michigan University
9-13,5-6MAC
75
vs
48
Ohio
4-17,2-9MAC
1
2
3
4
F
Ohio
10
12
15
11
48
Central Mich.
25
23
24
3
75
Photo by: Lauren Verellen '26 - @laurenverellen_photography
Triple-Double and Two 20-Point Games from Freshmen as Women’s Hoops Thumps Ohio, 75-48
2/5/2025 10:44:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Jess Lawson records the program’s first triple-double in nearly five years; Morson (24), Darrington (21) each eclipse 20 points
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. — "We're going to be a dangerous team if we focus on defense and locking in on the gameplan like that."
Another notable step forward for Central Michigan Women's Basketball in its second season under Head Coach Kristin Haynie Wednesday night as it logged its largest margin of victory in over five years, 75-48, over Ohio.
The Chippewas led by as many as 38 points before the benches unloaded in the fourth quarter, the largest lead marked by the program since defeating Bowling Green, 92-54, on Feb. 20, 2019.
"Everyone got to play and got good minutes. We have to keep that rolling."
Senior Jess Lawson (Las Vegas, Nev. / Legacy) marked the program's first triple-double (10pt, 11reb, 10ast) since Micaela Kelly '21 dropped a 21-12-10 line at Eastern Michigan on March 7, 2020.
"It's awesome, I'm proud of her. We've been working on her vision. We watch a lot of film and now she's applying it. She's seeing the court better and we're very excited for that. When she can start passing like that regularly, we're going to be really dangerous."
Lawson's breakthrough came soon after taking on a more vocal role with her teammates, encouraged by her coaches.
"Coach [Haynie] really talks about player-led teams," Lawson said. "As a captain, I want to do a good job of trying to lead the team, especially when I'm not on the court—making sure everyone is in their right spots—just making sure when we do get down, we're bringing everyone back together."
Lawson is the 17th player to record a triple-double in NCAA I Women's Basketball this season.
For Haynie, there were signs early that Wednesday night would be a success.
"You could tell in our players' eyes that they were locked in from the jump, and they kept that. We talked about having a killer instinct and staying locked in every possession. Really proud of them for doing that tonight."
Ayanna-Sarai Darrington (Lexington, Ky. / Frederick Douglass) rebounded from a foul-riddled performance with her first career 20-point game with 21, to go with 12 points for her third double-double. The rookie center led the way for the Chippewas with 14 points at intermission.
Madi Morson (Canton, Mich. / Salem) knocked down a career-high six three-pointers, three in the first eight minutes. Her third marked a 17-point lead, 23-6, just eight minutes into the contest.
"We were doing a really good job sharing the ball, making that one more pass. When you knock shots down it feels good.
"The players are in the gym working; they're not just showing up to practice and calling it a day."
Morson finished with 24 points for her fourth consecutive 20-point outing, sixth of her freshman season.
"She's fun to work with, her hard work is paying off. You can't be better and make shots with just practice: she's working outside of practice and getting up extra reps."
The Chippewas boasted another overwhelming night on the boards, 58-34, for its fourth 20-plus margin in Mid-American Conference play this season, fifth overall, which led to a 19-0 advantage in second chance points.
Central Michigan Women's Basketball will take a 10-day hiatus from league action as the second game of the 2024-25 MAC-Sun Belt Conference Challenge (Feb. 8) is the only contest before a rematch with Bowling Green (Feb. 15).
"We don't care who we play, we talk about 'attacking tomorrow.' It doesn't matter the opponent, the mentality for how we prepare for a game is the same. I was proud of our effort today and so it's just about continuing that into practice and not just games."
The Chippewas will visit Marshall Saturday (1 p.m. ET), a former conference foe, for the first time since 2004, and will look to level the all-time series with the Thundering Herd, currently 5-4.
Another notable step forward for Central Michigan Women's Basketball in its second season under Head Coach Kristin Haynie Wednesday night as it logged its largest margin of victory in over five years, 75-48, over Ohio.
The Chippewas led by as many as 38 points before the benches unloaded in the fourth quarter, the largest lead marked by the program since defeating Bowling Green, 92-54, on Feb. 20, 2019.
"Everyone got to play and got good minutes. We have to keep that rolling."
Senior Jess Lawson (Las Vegas, Nev. / Legacy) marked the program's first triple-double (10pt, 11reb, 10ast) since Micaela Kelly '21 dropped a 21-12-10 line at Eastern Michigan on March 7, 2020.
"It's awesome, I'm proud of her. We've been working on her vision. We watch a lot of film and now she's applying it. She's seeing the court better and we're very excited for that. When she can start passing like that regularly, we're going to be really dangerous."
Lawson's breakthrough came soon after taking on a more vocal role with her teammates, encouraged by her coaches.
"Coach [Haynie] really talks about player-led teams," Lawson said. "As a captain, I want to do a good job of trying to lead the team, especially when I'm not on the court—making sure everyone is in their right spots—just making sure when we do get down, we're bringing everyone back together."
Lawson is the 17th player to record a triple-double in NCAA I Women's Basketball this season.
For Haynie, there were signs early that Wednesday night would be a success.
"You could tell in our players' eyes that they were locked in from the jump, and they kept that. We talked about having a killer instinct and staying locked in every possession. Really proud of them for doing that tonight."
Ayanna-Sarai Darrington (Lexington, Ky. / Frederick Douglass) rebounded from a foul-riddled performance with her first career 20-point game with 21, to go with 12 points for her third double-double. The rookie center led the way for the Chippewas with 14 points at intermission.
Madi Morson (Canton, Mich. / Salem) knocked down a career-high six three-pointers, three in the first eight minutes. Her third marked a 17-point lead, 23-6, just eight minutes into the contest.
"We were doing a really good job sharing the ball, making that one more pass. When you knock shots down it feels good.
"The players are in the gym working; they're not just showing up to practice and calling it a day."
Morson finished with 24 points for her fourth consecutive 20-point outing, sixth of her freshman season.
"She's fun to work with, her hard work is paying off. You can't be better and make shots with just practice: she's working outside of practice and getting up extra reps."
The Chippewas boasted another overwhelming night on the boards, 58-34, for its fourth 20-plus margin in Mid-American Conference play this season, fifth overall, which led to a 19-0 advantage in second chance points.
Central Michigan Women's Basketball will take a 10-day hiatus from league action as the second game of the 2024-25 MAC-Sun Belt Conference Challenge (Feb. 8) is the only contest before a rematch with Bowling Green (Feb. 15).
"We don't care who we play, we talk about 'attacking tomorrow.' It doesn't matter the opponent, the mentality for how we prepare for a game is the same. I was proud of our effort today and so it's just about continuing that into practice and not just games."
The Chippewas will visit Marshall Saturday (1 p.m. ET), a former conference foe, for the first time since 2004, and will look to level the all-time series with the Thundering Herd, currently 5-4.
Team Stats
Ohio
CMU
FG%
.305
.373
3FG%
.200
.267
FT%
.667
.647
RB
34
58
TO
15
13
STL
6
6
Game Leaders
Pts
24
FGM
6
3FGM
6
FTM
6
Pts
21
FGM
9
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
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