By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information

Toledo, Ohio---Ashley Tunstall (Huber Heights Wayne/Dayton, Ohio) was a dominant force in the post while helping the No. 5 Owens Community College women's basketball team pick up its ninth straight win in an 80-56 win over Mott Community College in the SHAC tonight.

Tunstall had game-high's in points (24), rebounds (13) and steals (5) to lead Owens, who improved to 9-1 overall with the win.

Early on, Demy Whitaker (Notre Dame Academy/Toledo, Ohio) and Tunstall combined for 12 points to help Owens jump out to a 16-2 lead through the game's first 5:36. Whitaker had eight of those points, with six of those coming on a pair of 3-pointers.

Despite going scoreless for nearly five minutes later in the half, Owens took a 39-23 lead into halftime thanks to a 10-4 run over the final 3:23.

Briana Williams (Stebbins/Dayton, Ohio) opened the second half with a 3-pointer from straightaway to start a 10-2 run that gave Owens a 49-25 lead with 17:33 remaining. Williams also closed the run with a pair of free throws, while Tunstall converted a 3-point play during the run.

Owens would stretch its lead to as many as 29 on multiple occasions during the second half before closing out the 24-point victory.

In the second half alone, Owens finished 15-for-26 from the foul line en route to a 26-for-41 performance overall. 

Aside from Tunstall's 24, four others finished in double figures in the scoring column for Owens. Sierra Harley (Africentric/Columbus, Ohio) was second on the team with 13 points despite struggling from the field (4-for-14), while Williams added 12, Courizma Williams (Hughes/Cincinnati, Ohio) added 11 and Whitaker had 10. 

Three players had a team-high two assists, while Harley and Briana Williams each added three steals. Tunstall finished 9-for-14 overall from the field and 6-for-8 from the foul line. Briana Williams also shot well from the foul line as the freshman point guard made 7-for-10.

Tiara Gooch (14) and KeyShawn Jones (10) led Mott in scoring, while Latrece Robinson (12) and Allie Brookman (11) led the team in rebounds. Jones added a game-high four assists.

Owens (9-1) will begin a six-game road trip on Dec. 13 against No. 15 Lake Michigan College at 1 p.m.

Notes

Prior to the game, Owens rose from 16th to 5th in the latest National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II national poll.