INDIANAPOLIS – A 13-point advantage after the opening 20 minutes helped Butler defeat Ball State on Saturday night 48-41. The physical contest between the two Indiana schools marked the third win of the season for the Bulldogs.

Loryn Goodwin notched a double-double as she scored 16 points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds for the Bulldogs. Sydney Buck scored a team-high 17 points, scoring 15 of those points from 3-point territory.

Buck made a career-high five 3-pointers, and went 5-for-13 from beyond the arc on the game. The freshman hit all five 3-pointers in the first half as she scored a team-high 15 points in the opening frame.

Goodwin recorded a game-high five steals defensively for the Bulldogs as the Butler defense held Ball State's leading scorer Nathalie Fontaine to a season-low nine points in the contest. The guard came into the game averaging 18 points per game.

The Bulldogs had the advantage on the glass as they outrebounded the Cardinals 48-30 in the contest and grabbed 19 offensive rebounds to just eight for Ball State. Ijeoma Uchendu added 11 rebounds in the win while Belle Obert was in the box score with nine.

Buck's five first half 3-pointers helped the Bulldogs cruise to a 30-13 lead in the first 15 minutes of the half. The 17-point lead was the largest of the game for either team. Both teams hit cold spells to end the first half with a halftime score of 30-17.

Ball State went on an 8-4 run to open the second half to cut the lead to 34-25. The Bulldogs responded by scoring the game's next seven points to bring the lead to 16 points with about 12 minutes remaining, the largest lead of the second half.

Butler then hit a dry spell where the team did not score a basket for more than nine minutes as the Cardinals scored nine-straight unanswered points to bring the score to 41-34 with 3:25 left in the game. Goodwin laid it up on the following possession to end the drought and give the Bulldogs a 43-34 lead.

Ball State's Jill Morrison converted two free throws before hitting a 3-pointer to cut the score to 43-39 with 1:21 left. Goodwin sank a pair of free throws to put Butler ahead by six as each team began fouling down the stretch with the game's outcome in hand.

The Bulldogs will return to action Monday, Dec. 22 when they take the road to face Illinois State. Tip -off is set for 4:05 p.m.