The Chargers secured a spot in the G-MAC tournament for the first time since the 2018-2019 season by beating fourth place Malone 70-45 on the road on Thursday. Two days later, Hillsdale fell 59-83 to undefeated Ashland University despite a strong offensive performance by sophomore Kendall McCormick.

Hillsdale comes out of the weekend with its first winning season in four years. Now 16-13 overall and 9-10 in the G-MAC with one game left in the regular season, Hillsdale has secured a tournament berth and currently sits in seventh place ahead of the Walsh University Cavaliers.

The Chargers led for the entire contest against Malone, coming out strong with a 10-0 run in the first quarter. Leading by 15 points at the half, Hillsdale carried that momentum into the second half to outscore Malone 26-14 in the third quarter and pull away for good.

“We executed our game plan well,” head coach Charlie Averkamp said. “Defensively, we were locked in and I think that allowed us to continue to gain confidence on the offensive end because we knew we were playing very well defensively and it allowed us to play a little more free on the offensive end.”

The Chargers held the Pioneers to just 28.1% shooting from the floor and shot 43.1% from the floor themselves, scoring 13 points on turnovers.

Senior Sydney Mills led the Chargers with 19 points and nine rebounds, just one short of her 11th double-double of the season. Sophomore Lauren McDonald and senior Arianna Sysum both scored 11 points in the contest.

Sophomore Peighton Nelson added five points and five rebounds. Sophomore Dani Salenbein had four points, six rebounds, and five assists, and senior Grace Touchette added eight points.

On Saturday, Hillsdale fell to undefeated Ashland University for the second time this season. The Chargers put up a fight in the second quarter, bringing the score within three points off of a jumpshot by Nelson with 5:57 on the clock in the second quarter.

“It was their senior day, so there was a huge crowd there,” McCormick said. “The environment was awesome, and it was so loud. When we cut it to three, the whole gym was silent.”

Ashland pulled ahead again to enter the fourth quarter with a 23 point lead. The Chargers scored 18 points for Ashland’s 19 in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t overcome the deficit.

McCormick had a strong night off the bench for Hillsdale, leading the team with 13 points.

“She played so confidently,” assistant coach Brianna Brennan said. “She just had a lot of energy plays where she attacked the hoop so strong and finished against very good defenders. It’s a perfect time of the season for her to gain that confidence as we go into post-season play.”

Mills added 10 points and grabbed four rebounds. Touchette chipped in seven points and seven rebounds, and senior Maverick Delp scored seven off the bench for Hillsdale.

The Chargers play Findlay on the road at 1 p.m. on Saturday in their final regular season game. A win against Findlay would give Hillsdale a chance for better seeding in the first round of the G-MAC tournament next week.

“In the tournament, if we win, we keep playing,” Brennan said. “It’s a good feeling because you don’t ever want the season to end, especially for the seniors who have been through it all and seen the program go through so much change and so much growth. I think our mindset is just that we’re ready to live another day and keep playing as long as we can. We haven’t had that opportunity before. Anything can happen in the tournament, so we’re just pumped to be able to have a shot.”