FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
Box Score

Feb. 16, 2010-- North Central College outscored visiting Elmhurst College by a 13-point margin in the second half but was unable to overcome the early deficit, falling 79-67 in a College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin women's basketball game at Gregory Arena.

The Bluejays (16-8, 9-4 CCIW) never trailed in the game, building an early six-point advantage before a Kaelyn Witkowski jumper pulled the host Cardinals (5-19, 2-11 CCIW) within three at 17-14 with 12:32 remaining. It would be as close as North Central would get as Elmhurst countered with 10 unanswered points to mushroom its lead to 13, part of a 27-6 run to close out the half, taking a 44-20 lead into intermission.

Elmhurst led by as many as 30-points in the second half before the home side closed out the game outscoring the Bluejays by a 37 to 19 margin, settling on the final 12-point margin.

Jackie Errico came off the bench and led all scorers with 19 points, as four Cardinals ended the night in double figures. Errico would also lead the Cardinals on the glass, grabbing nine rebounds. Latrice Newson was nine-for-10 from the free throw line, ending the night with 12 points and three assists while Jenna Hoffman chipped in a career-high 12 points. Christine Karl added 10 points along with two steals while Brittany James, playing the final home game of her career, tallied eight points and two steals.

Five Bluejays ended the night in double figures, led by CCIW-scoring leader Lyndsie Long's 18-point effort. Kelsey Monroe added 15 while Meghan Merklein and Meghan Ney each tallied 14. Rashinda Joiner chipped in 12.

The Cardinals shot 48.1 percent (13-for-27) from the floor in the second half, a dramatic improvement over the first half where the squad shot just 26.9 percent (seven-for-26). On the flipside, Elmhurst enjoyed a tremendous first half shooting, draining 17 of its 29 shots (58.6 percent) before cooling off slightly in the second 20 minutes of play, shooting 48.4 percent (15-for-31) from the field.

North Central closes out the season on Saturday, Feb. 20, traveling to Rock Island, Ill. to face Augustana College where the Cardinals will look to sweep the season series for the second-consecutive season.