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Box Score

LISLE, Ill. (Dec. 21, 2010)-- Three Cardinals finished in double figures as North Central College closed out its six-game road trip on Tuesday night at the Rice Center, falling 73-64 to host Benedictine University in a non-conference women's basketball game.

Helen Muleya tallied the game's first bucket in what turned out to be the Cardinals' (3-7) only lead of the night as Benedictine (5-3) scored the next nine points, eventually taking a 33-25 lead into the halftime break. Christine Karl headlined the Cardinals' first half efforts, accounting for 13 of the team's 25 points.

A Jenny Swanson three-pointer cut the deficit to just five before the Eagles scored 10 of the next 12 points to take a game-high 13-point lead with 16:37 remaining in the second half. Undeterred, the Cardinals continued to chip away at the home team's lead, pulling to within two at 56-54 with 9:26 remaining off a jumper by Emily Collins. The Eagles quickly countered, pushing their advantage back up to six before the Cardinals once again closed the gap, coming within one off a Karl jumper with 5:13 to go and again off a pair of Jackie Errico free throws with 4:30 remaining.

The final 4:30 of play saw the homestanding Eagles pull away, outscoring North Central by an 11-3 margin to hold on for the victory.

Karl led the Cardinal scoring charge, piling on 17 points while Muleya and Swanson each tallied 13. It was Muleya's third straight game in double figures, shooting five-for-eight from the floor and dishing out five assists. Collins led the team on the glass with 10 rebounds while Jasmine Tracy had a team-high six assists and three steals.

Benedictine's Jenn Bren led all scorers with 19 points while grabbing a team-high nine boards. Tracey Walsh tallied 15 points while Jillian Lipman chipped in 11.

The Cardinals held a slim edge in the turnover battle and on the glass but was unable to keep pace with the Eagles who shot a red-hot 64 percent (16-for-25) from the field in the second half.

North Central's six-game road trip featured games in four different states across three time zones.

The Cardinals return to the hardwood on Friday, Dec. 31, hosting Dominican University at 2 p.m. inside Gregory Arena.