FRANKLIN, Ind. – The Franklin women's basketball team dominated from start to finish on Saturday (Dec. 7) afternoon, picking up their first league win of the year with an 81-53 victory over previously unbeaten Bluffton Beavers.

Franklin (3-2, 1-1 HCAC) led by as many as 28 points in the game, holding Bluffton (5-1, 1-1 HCAC) to 31.4% (16-for-51) from the floor and 14.3% (2-for-14) from three, both season-low shooting totals for the Beavers. Bayleigh Walker went for 16 points to lead the Grizzlies in scoring, as three players finished in double figures.

Early on it was all Grizzlies as Franklin rushed out to a 12-4 lead in the opening four minutes. But the offense would manage just three field goals for the rest of the quarter and thanks to some Franklin foul trouble on defense, the Beavers were able to cut the deficit to 20-18 after one quarter, with 10 of their points coming from the line.

That proved to be as close as the Beavers would get the rest of the afternoon, as Franklin stretched the lead to double-digits with an 11-2 run to open the second quarter and make it a 31-20 game with five minutes to go in the half. When the teams broke for halftime, Franklin held a 42-32 lead thanks to a late three from Britney Ballard that closed the half.

Franklin put the game away with a dominant third quarter, out-scoring the Beavers 21-10 in the period to lead 63-42 going into the fourth. Their lead continued to grow throughout the fourth quarter, with every member of the roster seeing action before the final horn.

Destinee Cross had a season-high 14 points while Ballard chipped in with 10 points for a Franklin offense that shot 42.3% (33-for-78) on the night while knocking down a season-high eight three-pointers. Rebounds were 50-37 in Franklin's favor with Walker and Cross tying for the team lead with eight boards each.

Ballard would also set a career-high with eight assists as Franklin handed out helpers on 19 field goals. The Grizzlies forced 22 giveaways on the night that results in 23 Franklin points.

Franklin will complete the opening leg of conference play next Saturday (Dec. 14), when they welcome the Earlham Quakers to the Spurlock Center. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m.