KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Western Michigan women's basketball picked up an emphatic win over visiting Kentucky State on Tuesday afternoon by a score of 95-58. The win is the first for the Broncos in the 2021-22 regular season.

WMU started the game off with a 12-0 run and did not look back. Sophomore guard Lauren Ross led the Broncos with 19 points and five rebounds in 23 minutes of play. Ross finished shooting 70% from the field on 7/10 shooting, while also shooting 3/6 from beyond the arc.

Sophomore guard Taylor Williams had her first official double-double of the season, finishing with 14 points and 12 rebounds on 5-11 shooting. Williams also recorded a double-double in the exhibition game against Goshen College last week.

Junior guard Sydney Shafer added an additional 17 points and five steals in 25 minutes of play for WMU, and all five starters finished scoring in double-digits.

While the offense was clicking, so too was the defense. The Broncos forced 27 Thorobread turnovers, recording 14 steals as a team, and also capitalized off of Kentucky State blunders for 35 points.

The Broncos were able to control the block against Kentucky State, scoring 48 of their 95 points in the paint. Additionally, Western Michigan received a nice boost from the reserves who added 25 points to their team's cause. Senior guard Maddie Watters added eight points and a pair of steals, while freshmen center Lauren Audino and junior forward Abby Voss each added seven points.

The balanced scoring effort was certainly something that head coach Shane Clipfell was pleased with. When asked how his team was able to find success this afternoon, Clipfell had this to say: "We had really good ball movement from the beginning [of the game] with our offense. The ball was going from one side to the other, inside-out, and I thought we had great balance. It wasn't one person over and over again."

Clipfell also praised his starters, who scored 70 combined points, following their strong performance. "That group making each other better consistently, which they all have the ability to do, makes the sky the limit collectively for us," Clipfell explained. The Bronco starters all finished with +/- ratings of 40 and higher, including a team high +53 for Sydney Shafer.

Next, Western Michigan will travel to Purdue on Nov. 14 for a non-conference matchup with the Boilermakers. Tip-off in West Lafayette is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Sunday's game will also be broadcast on Big Ten Network.

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