Ashtin Elder

Titans Push Panthers to the Brink in Final Exhibition

Titans led by as many as 14

11/4/2024 8:04:00 PM

CHARLESTON, Ill. - The 10th-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team nearly knocked off Division I Eastern Illinois University on the road Monday night, Nov. 4. The Titans came out strong, resulting in a 12-point halftime lead, but the Panthers used a strong second half to down IWU, 70-67.

Senior Mallory Powers (Amboy, Ill.-Amboy) led Illinois Wesleyan with 18 points and four assists. Senior Lauren Huber (Lombard, Ill.-Glenbard East) and junior Ava Bardic (Lincolnshire, Ill.-Stevenson) each added 13 points, while Bardic led the team with four steals and added three assists. Senior Caite Knutson (Maryville, Ill.-Collinsville) and junior Laura Mahlum (Barrington, Ill.-Barrington) tied for the team lead with five rebounds apiece.

The Titan defense was humming early, as the Green and White forced the Panthers into four turnovers and 0-for-5 shooting over the first three minutes of the game. White found Huber for a layup for the game's first points, before the duo repeated the play for a 4-0 IWU lead. Powers followed with a steal on EIU's next possession, finding Bardic for a layup in transition. The junior hit the hoop and drew the harm to give the Titans a 7-0 advantage.

The Panthers cracked the scoreboard at the 6:55 mark, but Bardic assisted a Powers three-ball to push IWU ahead, 10-2, with 6:46 to go in the opening stanza.

A 9-0 run by Eastern Illinois trimmed the Titan lead to one, 13-12, before Bardic hit Powers for a three-ball to give IWU a 16-12 lead after 10 minutes of action.

The Green and White used a 12-2 run in the second quarter to reclaim control. The spurt featured buckets by Mahlum, senior Kate Palmer (Geneva, Ill.-Geneva), Powers, Knutson, Bardic, and junior Sawyer White (Downers Grove, Ill.-Montini Catholic) as IWU drove ahead, 30-18, with six minutes remaining in the half.

Leading 40-28 out of halftime, Illinois Wesleyan lost its momentum as Eastern Illinois used efficient shooting to charge ahead, 57-51. Huber slipped a pass to Powers for a bucket with five seconds on the clock to pull the Titans within four, 57-53, into the final 10 minutes.

Free throws by Powers, Palmer, and Bardic were the start of a Titan run that Bardic finished off with a jumper. The bucket boosted the Green and White ahead, 65-64, with 2:13 on the clock.

A layup put the Panthers back on top by three, and while Huber layup drew IWU within one, the Titans ran out of steam.

With the preseason complete, Illinois Wesleyan will now focus its attention on the official start of the 2024-25 season. IWU will begin the season with a bout against Calvin University Friday, Nov. 15, before squaring off with Hope College Saturday, Nov. 16.

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