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IWU at Wheaton
Kodiak Creative
68
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 11-7,8-1 CCIW
49
North Park NPU 11-5,4-4 CCIW
Winner
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
11-7,8-1 CCIW
68
Final
49
North Park NPU
11-5,4-4 CCIW
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 18 13 20 17 68
North Park NPU 13 11 12 13 49

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Windy City Winners: Women’s Hoops Defeats North Park

Seniors Lansford, Bowen, and Eck combine for 42 points

CHICAGO - The senior trio of Brooke Lansford (Leawood, Kan.-Blue Valley West), Kaia Bowen (Rantoul, Ill.-St. Thomas More), and Catie Eck (Springfield, Ill.-Sacred Heart-Griffin) led the Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team to a 68-49 win at North Park University Monday night, Jan. 24. The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin win improved IWU's record to 11-7 overall and 8-1 in league play, while North Park dipped to 11-5 and 4-4 in the CCIW.

Lansford dropped a team-high 20 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including three triples. She went 7-for-8 at the free throw line, while grabbing six rebounds and dishing out three assists. Bowen and Eck finished with 11 points apiece. Eck was all over the place for the Green and White, grabbing a team-high eight rebounds to go along with four blocks, three steals, and two assists. 

In a game defined by defense, the Titans limited the Vikings to a field goal percentage of 35.1 percent, including an 0-for-11 showing from beyond the arc. IWU converted 20-of-54 shots attempts, but benefited from a 7-for-15 (46.7 percent) effort from distance. Illinois Wesleyan went 21-for-29 at the charity stripe (72.4 percent), while North Park made 9-of-15 free throw attempts.

The Green and White compiled a 47-33 rebounding advantage, which led to a 12-4 lead in second chance points. IWU also held a 20-7 edge in bench points and notched six blocks to NPU's three. 

The Titans seemingly found their footing towards the tail end of the opening quarter, using a 6-1 run over the final two and a half minutes to go up 18-13. Junior Katelyn Heller (Glen Ellyn, Ill.-Glenbard West) paced the Green and White with six first-quarter points, while Lansford's free throws gave IWU a five-point edge into the second period.

Illinois Wesleyan maintained the momentum in quarter two as junior Kelly Carlson (Western Springs, Ill.-Lyons Township) slipped a pass to Bowen cutting down the opposite side of the lane for an easy bucket. The layup extended the Titans' lead to nine, 22-13, and brought about a North Park timeout. 

The Vikings cut the IWU advantage in half on a jumper with 2:17 to go in the period, but Lansford answered with a pull-up off a NPU miscue. Lansford and Eck capped the first-half scoring with four free throws to send the Titans into the break with a 31-24 advantage.

A pair of Eck free throws gave the Green and White a double-digit lead midway through the third, before Carlson snuck in a putback at the buzzer to push IWU ahead 51-36 with 10 minutes to go. 

A three and a half minute scoring drought by North Park was coupled with a seven-point run by Illinois Wesleyan. Free throws by Bowen and Heller sandwiched a Lansford triple to expand IWU's lead to 21, 61-40, with 5:32 left on the clock.

Lansford remained hot, adding five points down the stretch to keep the Titans firmly in control. A jumper by sophomore Launi Chanthaboury (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) capped the scoring and finished off the 68-49 IWU victory.

Illinois Wesleyan returns to the Shirk Center Wednesday night, Jan 26, for a CCIW clash with Elmhurst University. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 
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