FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
Box Score
Jan. 22, 2014 - The North Central College women's basketball team threatened to hand Illinois Wesleyan University its first College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) loss on Wednesday, hanging with the Titans throughout the first half before IWU caught fire in the second half and escaped with a 115-106 victory over the Cardinals at Gregory Arena.
On a day when new lights were installed in the arena, the Cardinals (9-8, 2-4 CCIW) threatened to shoot them out from three-point range. North Central made 11 of 22 threes in the first half and 17 of 38 (44.7 percent) for the game, including a school-record performance by Kelsey Cooling. The junior guard sank a North Central-record seven three-pointers on nine attempts and 10 of 15 shots overall in posting a career-high 28 points.
The first half saw five ties and 10 lead changes. The Cardinals owned an early 15-9 advantage before IWU went on a 10-3 surge to pull in front. The Titans led by as many as eight points, but North Central countered with three-pointers from Cooling, Maryssa Cladis and Marion Boeck to close the gap to a single point. The hosts later tied the score at 41-41 on Larynn Shumaker's layup before regaining the lead on a Kim Wilson three-pointer with 4:44 left in the first half.
The Titans (12-5, 6-0 CCIW) responded by putting up the next 11 points, taking advantage of six straight missed North Central shots, and led by a 51-44 count. The Cardinals scored six of the final eight points in the period, trailing by just a 53-50 count at halftime.
IWU opened the second half by making its first 10 shots from the floor and went on to make 17 of 23 field-goal attempts in the first 10 minutes of the period, outscoring North Central during that time, 39-22, and taking a 92-72 lead. The Titans went on to shoot 65.8 percent (25-38) in the final 20 minutes and led comfortably until North Central closed the game with a 12-1 surge that slashed the deficit to single digits just before the final buzzer.
Shumaker totaled 18 points for the Cardinals, while Cladis put up 13 and Boeck scored 10. Uzuri Williams grabbed a team-best eight rebounds and Bobbi Johns turned in seven assists.
Colleen McMahon led six double-figure scorers for IWU with 28 points on 13 of 17 shooting. Shelby Jackson totaled 23 points, 11 rebounds and three blocked shots, while Gabrielle Holness scored 21 points in 21 minutes off the bench.
The Cardinals travel to face Wheaton College (12-4, 3-3) on Saturday. Tipoff at King Arena is scheduled for 5 p.m. Links to live video, audio and in-game statistics can be found by clicking HERE.
