Ashland on brink of history, goes for win No. 52 in a row

The Ashland women's basketball team did it again.

Fifty-one games in a row. The Eagles have been on the winning side of the scoreboard since the beginning of the 2016-17 season, most often in dominating fashion. Only one team in the history of Division II women's basketball has matched that. Ashland tied the 2005-2006 Washburn mark Thursday evening in another commanding victory.

The stage is set. Ashland will go for a record that has stood since 2006. Number 52 is theirs for the taking, but let's take a quick look back at the first 51.

Ashland's streak by the numbers:

February 4, 2016 --The last road loss the Eagles suffered. Ashland lost at Walsh (Ohio) 78-64.

March 12, 2016 -- The last loss for Ashland, falling to Drury 86-60 in the Midwest Region semifinals.

1 -- The closest margin of victory over the streak. The Eagles defeated Cedarville 79-78 to move to 2-0 this season on Laina Snyder's game-winning, buzzer-beater.

THIS JUST HAPPENED! extends its winning streak to 39 games on a Laina Snyder buzzer beater!

— Ashland Eagles (@goashlandeagles)

4 -- Games in a row that the Eagles have posted 100 or more points, breaking their own record set the previous game. Ashland has scored 100 points 18 times during the run. How did Washburn do? Twice. The Inchabods broke the century mark twice.

4 -- Undefeated seasons in the history of DII women's basketball. Ashland's 37-0 championship season made it the fourth, joining North Dakota State in 1995, Bentley in 2014, and Lubbock Christian in 2016. The Eagles' 37 wins were the most of any of the previous undefeated teams and second most in a single season in DII women's basketball history.

6 -- Wins shy of the DII basketball record. Winona State men's basketball won 57 straight from January 13, 2006 to March 22, 2007.

8-0 -- Record against ranked teams during the streak. The average margin of victory against some of the best in DII women's basketball, you ask? An astounding 19.9 points per win after the 35-point defeat of No. 13 Michigan Tech.

We're still #1 in the country in this week's poll.



We play #13 Michigan Tech tomorrow. They'll be the eighth ranked team we've played since the start of our 50 game win streak!

— Ashland Eagles (@goashlandeagles)

18.5 -- The average margin of defeat in the Eagles last two (home and away) losses before the streak began.

19-0 -- Eagles record on the road -- which is how they will have to win to tie the record -- during the streak. They are 5-0 on neutral sites. The Eagles have won 21 in a row (26 if counting neutral) on the road dating back before the streak started. 

20 -- Consecutive No. 1 rankings for the Eagles, spanning an entire calendar year.

MORE: Ashland has now been No. 1 for a whole year

25 -- Straight non-conference wins the Eagles have posted.

28 -- Wins during the streak that have come by 30 or more points.

27 -- Consecutive home wins, which is still 60 short of the DII women's basketball record. The Eagles had a 30-game home winning streak snapped against Drury before the current streak began.

32.0 -- Average margin of victory during the streak. In comparison, Washburn won by 21.9 points during their record-setting run.

44.8 -- Average margin of victory for Ashland this past December, when they played some of the best basketball during the streak. The Eagles finished 6-0, scoring no less than 95 points in any contest, while breaking the century mark four times.

51 -- Wins in a row, the longest current winning streak amongst men's and women's basketball at any level.

82-2 -- The almost unimaginable record that head coach Robyn Fralick has put together to start her career. She also has an Ashland national championship as an assistant coach (2013) to go along with last season's title as a head coach.

87 -- Widest margin of victory during the streak, a November 12, 2016, 128-41 victory. The 87 points is a program record. The 128 points were the most scored by the Eagles during their winning streak, and set the program record as well.

121 -- The most points scored thus far in 2017-18. The 121-56 victory over Tiffin tied the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference record for most points scored in a regular season game. 

1000/1000 -- Laina Snyder grabbed 12 rebounds in win No. 51, giving her 1,006 in her illustrious career. She is the first Ashland women's basketball player to record 1000 rebounds, making her the president of the 1000/1000 Club.

Laina Snyder just became the first player in Ashland University women’s basketball history to record 1,000 rebounds in a career!

— Ashland Eagles (@goashlandeagles)

Ashland again hits the road Saturday, January 6. The 3 p.m. ET tip off against Northern Michigan will be for history. How do the two teams matchup?

Tale of the tape

Laina Snyder continues to anchor this team (19.6 points, 7.6 rebounds per game), but the Eagles are deep and have many ways to beat an opponent. Jodi Johnson scored 22 points against Michigan Tech to raise her season average to 18.9 points per game. Andi Daugherty is back on track after missing some of the early season, scoring 60 points over her past three games. Maddie Dackin, Sara Loomis, Renee Stimpert, Julie Worley and Brooke Smith are all playing over 15 minutes a night, while chipping in seven or more points per game each. 

The road doesn't get any easier for Ashland, as they return home to face Grand Valley State, who currently owns first place in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference North Division. But Saturday afternoon, all eyes of the DII women's basketball world will be on the Marquette, MI campus as Ashland goes for No. 52.