Box Score
JOLIET, Ill. - Four players scored in double figures and the Illinois Wesleyan women's basketball team improved to 5-3 with a hard-fought 73-69 win at the University of St. Francis at the Sullivan Center in Joliet, Ill., on Thursday (Dec. 6).
Game Summary
• St. Francis (who fell to 3-6) led by five at 9-4 early in the contest but the the No. 10-ranked Titans scored 12 straight points to grab a 16-9 lead with 12:09 left. IWU led by as many as nine points at 22-13 with 9:44 to go but the Saints roared back to gain a 42-41 halftime lead with 30 seconds to play on a basket and free throw by Marissa Draper.
• Illinois Wesleyan scored the first eight points of the second half and held a cushion throughout most of the final period, leading by as many as nine at 62-53 at the 12:03 mark. But the Saints got within two at 69-67 with 3:48 to go and had two shots in the final 7 seconds to tie the game at 71 that would not go in. Two free throws by junior guard
Lexi Baltes with 1 second left gave IWU the final margin.
• Illinois Wesleyan shot 37.3 percent from the field (25 of 67), 27.6 percent from 3-point range (8 of 29) and 79 percent from the charity stripe (15 of 19).
• The Saints shot 43 percent (24 of 56), were 0 for 6 from beyond the arc (4 of 16) and 75 percent on free throws (21 of 28).
• Illinois Wesleyan ended up with a 41-37 rebounding edge, which included 19 offensive rebounds. The Titans were guilty of 23 turnovers while the Saints admitted to 24.
Illinois Wesleyan Statistical Leaders
Senior
Melissa Gardner (19 points)
Junior
Colleen McMahon (16 points)
Senior
Michelle Bilek (12 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists)
Junior
Shelby Jackson (10 points, 7 rebounds)
St. Francis Statistical Leaders
Marissa Draper (12 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists)
Katie Gonnering (26 points, 8 rebounds)
Ashley Teresiak (10 points, 10 rebounds)
Who's Next?
• The Titans will break for final exams and play again at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 15 at Wisconsin-Stevens Point, ranked No. 12 in the weekly D3hoops.com poll.
• IWU lost to Stevens Point last year, 82-68, on Dec. 10 at the Shirk Center, then went on to win 25 of its last 26 games en route to the national title.
