Contact: Nicholas Osterloo, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324

NAPERVILLE, Ill. (Feb. 1, 2023) - Facing Carroll University for the second time this season, the North Central College women's basketball team fell to the Pioneers 91-55 on Wednesday evening inside Gregory Arena.

Mitrese Smith tallied 17 points and five rebounds to lead the Cardinals in the scoring department with Natalie Stavropoulos adding 12 points. On the night, North Central shot 36% from the field and 31% from three-point range. Olivia Rangel led all scorers with 20 points.

Back-to-back threes from Megan Duffy gave the Cardinals an early 10-3 advantage. Following a Grace Kieffer three, the Pioneers responded with two fastbreak layups, but North Central headed into the second quarter with a 15-13 lead.

Smith kicked off the quarter with a layup on the opening possession before Carroll took their first lead since the game's first basket. They went on a 9-0 run to open a 31-21 edge and later extended the lead to 20. Megan McClure added a basket for the Cardinals as Carroll took a 45-25 lead into halftime.

Stavropoulos buried a three early into the second half, followed by a layup from Smith. With 4:37 to play in the third quarter, Allison Pearson knocked down a jumper to set the score at 60-37. The Pioneers closed the quarter on an 8-2 run to hold a 70-41 advantage with 10 minutes to play. The team traded baskets as Lexie Hernandez hit a running floater for her first points of the game. The Pioneers extended their lead late to take a 91-55 victory over the Cardinals.

The Cardinals look to complete the season sweep of Elmhurst University on Saturday as they host the Bluejays at 2 p.m. inside Gregory Arena. 

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