DECATUR, Ill. (Jan. 27, 2009) - Millikin University took a 13-point lead into halftime in what proved to be the winning margin, sending the North Central College women's basketball team its second straight College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin road loss, falling 63-50 Tuesday night at the Griswold Center.

Rocki Dorsett opened up the scoring 20 seconds in, draining a three pointer to give the Big Blue the 3-0 lead. Brianne Parra (Sr., Justice, Ill./Argo) would score the games next six points while Meghan McGuire (So., Elgin, Ill./Central) added a bucket as the Cardinals went on an 8-0 run to take a five point lead with 15:14 remaining in the opening half. The lead proved to be short lived as Millikin stormed back to tie the game at 8 and again at 11 apiece as the Big Blue scored 10 unanswered to build an 18-11 advantage, never trailing from that point on as the home team took a 33-20 lead into the break.

The second half saw the Cardinals cut the deficit to as little as four points after a Jackie Errico (So., Blue Island, Ill./Marian Catholic) three with 11:45 to play before the Big Blue would bump their lead back to nine just two minutes later. Millikin's lead would swell to a game-high 15 points with just over a minute and a half to play before settling on the final 13-point margin.

For the sixth straight game, Parra finished in double figures, leading the team with a game-high 17 points. McGuire led the Cardinals on the glass with 10 rebounds to go along with her eight points while Errico chipped in nine points, making all three of her shots from behind the arc. Amber Cibrario (Sr., Elk Grove, Ill./Elk Grove) dished out a team-high six assists while Gia Navarra (Sr., Willowbrook, Ill./Hinsdale Central) ended the night with seven points and five boards.

Julia Robert and Crystal Zeigler came off the bench for Millikin, scoring 12 and 11 points while starters Tracie Yantis and Elise Wildman added 11 and 10. Wildman and Zeigler each finished with a team-high seven rebounds while Yantis had a game-high three steals.

Millikin was able to exploit the Cardinals, making 25 trips to the free throw line and hitting 22 of them while North Central made it to the line just six times. The Big Blue also held the edge in field goal percentage, hitting 40.5 percent (17-for-42) while limiting the Cardinals to just 30.4 percent (21-for-69).

Tuesday's game was the first time all season North Central won the turnover battle and still lost. The Cardinals had a season low 10 turnovers compared to Millikin's 16, making North Central 4-1 in games when winning the turnover battle.

With the loss, North Central drops to 8-8 overall and 3-3 in CCIW play while Millikin improves to 9-7 overall and 3-3 in conference. The Cardinals return to the hardwood on Saturday, facing top ranked and undefeated Illinois Wesleyan University at Gregory Arena. Saturday's contest is the beginning of a five game stretch that will see the Cardinals at home for four of those games.