by Neal Settle, TransySports.com contributor

Lexington, KY- Riding the white-hot shooting of senior guards Shawn Kolani and Katelyn Smith, the Transylvania women's basketball team outshot the Hanover Panthers to survive, 89-84 on Wednesday night at the Beck Center.

The tight win for the Pioneers was their eight in nine games, and improved their record to 14-6 overall and 10-3 in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play, inching the team closer to a postseason bid in the HCAC conference tournament.

Senior guard Katelyn Smith exploded for 27 points in 36 minutes of action, while Shawn Kolani continued her string of monster performances over the past few weeks, turning in a double-double of 21 points along with a career-high 14 assists.

The tone of the game was set right from tip-off, with Kolani knocking down two three-pointers in the first minute of action. Transylvania never trailed in the first half.

The Pioneers shot 53 percent as a team from the three-point line, and the lead stretched to 12 halfway through the second quarter. The Pioneers facilitated with laser focus in the first half, scoring 15 makes on 12 assists to build a halftime lead of 45-36.

Hanover did their best to stay in the game with some hot shooting of their own, going 4-for-10 from behind-the-arc in the first half. The Panthers were led in scoring by Morgan Bivins, who had 10 in the first half.

In the third quarter Hanover began making their run. Capitalizing on some cold shooting and sloppy ball control by the Pioneers, the Panthers trimmed the lead from 9 to 2 by the end of the third quarter.

Hanover took their first lead of the game with 6:30 left in the fourth quarter, but the Pioneers answered immediately with a timely 3-ball by Lindsay Hieronymus. The Panthers tied the game up again on two free throws by Morgan Bivins with 3:59 to go.

The final three minutes of the game made for electrifying basketball. The teams traded four 3-pointers in a matter of 30 seconds, with the Pioneers coming out of the barrage holding an 81-79 lead with 1:56 left in the game.

The Pioneers were able to extend the final margin to 84-89 with some clutch shooting from the charity stripe, where they were 7-for-7 in the second half.  

Wednesday marked another stellar game for Kolani, who hit a career-high in assists. Her previous career-high was 10 assists, set earlier this season against Earlham on January 6.

Kolani shot 6-for-10 from outside, making it the fourth time in the last seven games that Kolani has hit six or more threes in a game. The senior has now scored in double figures in seven of her last eight games.

With her game-leading 27 points on 12-for-17 shooting from the field, Smith neared closer to ascending the summit of the Transylvania women's all-time leading scorer list. Smith now stands 76 points away from tying her former teammate, Nicole Coffman for the program record with 1,920 points.

Five games remain in Transylvania's HCAC regular season; with the win tonight, the Pioneers can clinch a HCAC Tournament berth by winning one of their next five.   

Transylvania looks to keep their winning ways as they return to action at home this Saturday, February 6, in a crucial matchup with first place Bluffton (12-1 HCAC, 19-1 overall) at the Beck Center. The Pioneers currently sit two games back of the previously undefeated Beavers, who edged the Pios 65-61 on December 5. Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m.

For the latest on Pioneers women's basketball, follow them on twitter @TUWBX