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Leyden jump hook vs. Carthage 2-11-2026
ASHTIN ELDER PHOTO
52
Carthage CARTH 12-10,6-7 CCIW
64
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 18-5,13-1 CCIW
Carthage CARTH
12-10,6-7 CCIW
52
Final
64
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
18-5,13-1 CCIW
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Carthage CARTH 15 13 10 14 52
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 12 22 17 13 64

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Women’s Hoops Clips Carthage

Three Titans score in double figures

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - An all-around effort led the 18th-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team to a 64-52 win over Carthage College Wednesday night, Feb. 11, inside the Shirk Center. The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin win boosted the Titans' record to 18-5 on the season and 13-1 in conference play, while the Firebirds fell to 12-10 (6-7 CCIW).

Senior Ava Bardic (Lincolnshire, Ill.-Stevenson) was one of three double-digit scorers as she finished with a game-high 21 points. Freshman Caitlin Leyden (Park Ridge, Ill.-Maine South) and senior Sawyer White (Downers Grove, Ill.-Montini Catholic) chipped in 16 and 10 points, respectively. Redshirt freshman Leah Palmer (Geneva, Ill.-Geneva) posted a near double-double with nine points and a team-high seven rebounds while also leading the team with two blocks.

Illinois Wesleyan shot 41.4 percent from the floor, going 24-of-58 from the field, despite hitting just 3-of-15 three-point tries. The Titans converted 13-of-21 free throws. Carthage was limited to 21-for-56 shooting and 6-of-25 from beyond the arc. The Firebirds made just four trips to the free throw line, making all four. 

Both teams finished with 36 rebounds, while IWU held leads in fastbreak scoring (11-4), points off turnovers (25-9), points in the paint (40-38), and second-chance scoring (13-11). The Green and White turned the Firebirds over 24 times behind 16 steals. White notched a team-high four steals, while Bardic and freshman Asia Kobylarczyk (Park Ridge, Ill.-Maine South) tacked on three apiece.

Carthage won the tip and quickly chased in with a layup, but an offensive board by senior Sara Balli (Bloomingdale, Ill.-Lake Park) set up a driving bucket from White to tie the score. 

Leyden rejected a Firebirds' shot attempt and the Titans forced a five-second call on the ensuing inbounds. The Green and White rewarded the freshman on the other end, as Leyden split through the Carthage defense for a layup and a 4-2 IWU lead. 

Illinois Wesleyan stretched its lead to as many as four in the opening period, as White found Palmer on a pick-and-roll for a 12-8 advantage with 3:17 to go. Carthage bounced back though, closing the period on a 7-0 run aided by IWU fouls and turnovers to carry a 15-12 edge into the second.

Bardic took over in the next quarter, scoring 14 points over the 10-minute span. The senior hit a pull-up to get IWU off on the right foot and later carved up the Carthage defense for an and-one with the shot clock winding down. Another Bardic drive tied the game at 21 all, before seven straight points from the senior co-captain catapulted IWU in front, 28-23. 

Carthage ended a three-minute long scoring drought with a five-point run, but Bardic dished to Leyden for a trail jumper to reclaim a four-point lead, 32-28, with 40 seconds left. The ensuing inbounds fell victim to IWU's daunting full-court press as Bardic swiped the pass for Carthage's 14th turnover of the night. Balli finished off the heady defensive play with a layup to push the home team ahead by six, 34-28, as the teams trotted to the locker room.

The Firebirds came out of the intermission hot, tying the game at 34, to force an IWU timeout two minutes in. Staring down what appeared to be another empty possession, White turned up the backcourt pressure to force a Carthage turnover and skipped a pass to Bardic on the opposite wing. Hitting her defender with a shot fake from the wing, Bardic had a wide open lane for the lefty layup.

White took control over the next few minutes, knocking down free throws and a pair of threes to stretch the lead to double-digits into the fourth quarter.

Illinois Wesleyan maintained the upperhand over the final 10 minutes, expanding its cushion to as many as 18, to secure the win.

The Titans continue their homestand to cap off the regular season, welcoming Wheaton College to the Shirk Center Wednesday, Feb. 18. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
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