A dominant performance from sophomore guard Mya Babbitt guided the Kent State women’s basketball team to their second straight win by 20 points, after defeating Xavier 89-69 Saturday.

Babbitt has remained a steady offensive presence for the Flashes, and that continued against the Musketeers after she scored 25 points on 7-10 (70%) shooting and 4-6 (67%) from three-point range. Her 25 points is a career high.  

In six games so far, Babbitt is averaging 11.7 points while shooting 42.9% from the field and 49.9% from three. She’s also averaging 4.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists. 

“It’s so great to see her hard work pay off,” coach Todd Starkey said. “She’s been handling the ball great, she’s been playing great defense and she’s knocking down shots. That just makes us all the better.” 

The Flashes as a whole were also dominant offensively, as the team shot 30-56 (54%) from the field, 13-25 (52%) from three-point distance and 16-17 (94%) from the free throw line. Starkey acknowledged the recent turn around the offense has experienced with players coming back from injuries. 

“One of the things that we were really focused on today was not taking any steps backwards,” he said. “Dionna [Gray] coming back obviously puts everybody back in the right positions, and I think that settles us down and helps us stay focused on the right things.” 

Despite the high shooting percentages, the Flashes still struggled with offensive mistakes, committing 19 turnovers. However, the offense did look a lot smoother with ball movement as the team spread the rock around for a total of 17 assists. 

“We obviously need to clean up some of the turnover stuff that we have going on,” Starkey said. “Five of the six teams that we’ve played so far have pressed us, so that’s a new thing, but we also want to be able to take care of the basketball a little better.” 

The Flashes were in control of the game from tip-off as the team jumped out to a 24-18 lead after the first quarter. It was much of the same story for the second quarter, as well, with the Flashes going up 41-30. 

The Flashes refused to let up in the second half and held on to comfortably beat the Musketeers. 

“I was really proud of the way we played for probably 80% of the game,” Starkey said. “I thought we handled some of the runs they had and answered those runs effectively.” 

Along with Babbitt, several other Flashes showed up for the team. Senior forward Bridget Dunn was excellent on both ends of the floor for the Flashes. 

She finished with 17 points (6-11), 12 rebounds, two steals and one block. 

“The thing you don’t notice about Bridget’s game is her voice defensively and how she’s always directing traffic,” Starkey said. “It’s great to see her shooting it well, and she continues to be one of, if not the best, defensive rebounders in our conference. Probably one of the better defensive rebounders in the country number-wise.”

Dunn is currently averaging 9.8 rebounds per game. Among national players she’s tied for 42nd place, and in the MAC she’s in fourth place.

Senior guard Jenna Batsch and junior guard Dionna Gray also had big afternoons. They were both vital on offense, combining for 22 points (7-18) and 11 assists.  

Xavier saw some success offensively, but its defense was just overwhelmed by the Flashes’ hot scoring. The Musketeers’ best performances came from graduate forward Loren Christie and freshman guard Meri Kanerva. 

Christie scored 19 points (7-14), grabbed four rebounds and blocked two shots. Kanerva finished with 14 points (6-12) and five assists. 

The Flashes improve to 3-3 after the homestand while Xavier moves to 3-2. Next up for the team is the Puerto Rico Clasico tournament held in San Juan. 

Starkey said the tournament will benefit the Flashes in regards to recruiting and the MAC tournament down the line. 

“Most schools are trying to do that (play-in tournaments), and

you have to do things that are going to attract the best talent here,” he said. “We’re playing back-to-back days because it simulates tournament play, and we want to be prepared for the MAC tournament.” 

The Flashes will play against Brown Thursday and Colorado State Friday. Tip-off will begin at 1:30 p.m. on both days. 

“We’re looking for great opportunities there for us to continue to improve and also enjoy Thanksgiving together as a team,” Starkey said. 

John Engoglia is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].