The 2nd-seeded Shawnee State Bears (27-5) jumped out early and never looked back as they downed 7th-seeded William Woods (23-10) in the NAIA Division I Women's National Championship present by Kentuckytourism.com.

Shawnee State had a solid first half. Offensively, the Bears shot 52 percent from the field behind a balanced attack and drained eight 3-pointers to take a 45-18 lead at the break. Shawnee State held the Owls to 27 percent (6-of-22) from the floor and forced 16 Owl turnovers.

The Bears opened the game on a 6-0 run behind juniors Schera Sampson (Round Rock, TX) and Alex Pohl (Loveland, OH). William Woods hit a pair of baskets of their own to pull within 6-4, but the Bears' offense exploded on a 15-2 run, taking a commanding 21-6 lead with 9:30 remaining in the half. The Bears continued to add to their lead and a 3-pointer by senior Abby Ballman (Cincinnati, OH) gave Shawnee their largest lead of the game, 45-15 with three minutes left in the half. The Owls closed the half with a jumper by Megan Aubuchon and a free throw by Miranda Loesch to trail 45-18 at the break.

Shawnee State maintained a 20-point lead most of the second half and cruised to a 68-47 victory.

Four Bears scored double figures. Pohl led all scorers and tallied her 15th double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds to go along with five steals. Sampson added 15 points and six rebounds. Sophomore Alannah Sheets (Leon, WV) and Ballman each finished with 11 points, including hitting three 3-pointers each in the game.

William Woods was led by Sharron Andrews, Ashlee Taylor and Katie Scherder who each scored seven points in the game.

Shawnee State will face the 3rd-seed and defending national champions Asuza Pacific on Friday at 9:00 a.m. in the Second Round of the tournament. Asuza Pacific came from behind to defeat MidAmerica Nazarene 77-72 in overtime.