GREENCASTLE, Ind. -- On day one of the Midwest Challenge, the Illinois Wesleyan women's basketball team fell to No. 10-ranked Washington University in St. Louis on Saturday, Nov. 25 by a final score of 89-81.
With a loss the Titans fall to 2-2 on the season while Washington U. improved to 2-1.
Struggles from beyond the arc plagued the Titans who shot just 17.6 percent from deep during the contest on 3-of-17 shooting. Illinois Wesleyan shot 25-of-55 (45.4 percent) from inside the arc. The Bears shot an efficient 52.7 percent from the field and 42.9 percent on 6-of-14 shooting from deep. IWU won the turnover battle against the Bears in order to keep themselves in the game, scoring 23 points off 22 forced turnovers.
Four Titans scored in double figures led by 17 points from senior
Rebekah Ehresman on 6-of-13 shooting and 16 points from junior
Maddie Merritt who shot 6-of-11 from the floor. Senior
Molly McGraw was a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe which aided her 14 points, and senior
Kelsey Walsberg chipped in 10 which includes a pair of triples. Ehresman also led the team with eight assists, seven rebounds, and six steals.
No lead was safe in the first half as the two sides combined for six lead changes and seven scoring ties. The Bears six point lead at the break was the largest lead of the half following a last second lay-up from Madeline Homoly. Heading into the locker rooms Merritt led the Titans with 10 first half points on 4-of-5 shooting.
After Homoly extended the Bears lead to as many as 11 in the third quarter, Illinois Wesleyan went on a 20-5 run to take a 63-59 lead. Walsberg capped off the run with back-to-back 3-pointers. The Titans led by as many as five points towards the end of the third quarter, but a pair of lay-ups and a trip to the free-throw line gave Washington U. a one point lead heading into the fourth.
Ehresman's lay-up with 6:29 remaining in the contest gave Illinois Wesleyan their final lead of the game, 71-70, before the Bears mounted a 10-0 run sparked by three Titan turnovers. Now down 81-71, Illinois Wesleyan went on an 8-0 run of their own in an attempt to mount a comeback. Unfortunately for the Titans a lay-up from Stephanie Botkin with 44 seconds remaining forced Illinois Wesleyan to start intentionally fouling the Bears who converted on 3-of-4 attempts down the stretch.
What's Next?
On day two of the Midwest Challenge, Illinois Wesleyan will face the loser of DePauw University and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology who play in the second game of day one from Greencastle, Ind.
