By: Down 11 going into the fourth quarter, Illinois College got within two of Monmouth before the offense dried up down the stretch.
Box Score
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – The Illinois College women's basketball team fought back late and got within two points of Monmouth College in the fourth quarter before the Fighting Scots were able to pull away for the 79-67 win. The Scots improve to 4-5 (2-2 Midwest Conference) this season, while IC drops to 3-7 (1-2 MWC).
Brielle Greenleaf ended with a game-high 24 points on the night, and she started off with the first six points of the game for the Lady Blues, however Monmouth was matching her and a three-pointer midway through the first quarter gave the Fighting Scots an 11-6 lead.
Shannen Quehl had the next three points for Illinois College and then
McKenzie Skaggs, fouled on a three-pointer, made two to cut it to 14-11. After a
Madi Peyton steal, Greenleaf knocked in a transition three to knot the score at 14-14, but Monmouth would take a 21-17 lead at the end of the quarter despite 11 from the junior.
Greenleaf had the opening bucket of the second quarter to bring Illinois College within two, but turnovers soon helped the Scots pull away and open up a double-digit lead. Late in the quarter, Kourtney Schuetz and
Sydney Lett were able to knock down baseline jumpers and two free throws from Peyton brought the Lady Blues to within six, 39-33. A late put-back bucket by Monmouth's Tia Robertson and a free throw made it 45-37 at the break.
Trailing 51-39 early in the third quarter, Greenleaf got a friendly roll on a three-pointer and then the IC offense got a second chance after a Sydney Himmelman offensive rebound. Lett was able to connect on a mid-range jumper, making it 51-44. Monmouth responded to the challenge with seven straight to take a 58-44 lead before Greenleaf scored at the rim. In the final seconds of the third quarter, Skaggs got a layup on a fast break to keep the Lady Blues within 11, 61-50, heading to the final 10 minutes of play.
In the fourth quarter, the Lady Blues got off to a fast start thanks to a free throw from Skaggs and layups from Lett and Greenleaf to pull within six, 61-55. Yvonne Canelas stretched the advantage back to nine with a triple, but Illinois College unleashed a 10-2 run after that, getting to within two points at 67-65 after Quehl, Megan Price and Lett hit six straight free throws. Demi Johnson hit a big shot for the Scots at the four-minute mark to get the lead back to four, and from there IC was unable to offer much more offensively. Monmouth hit its shots at the charity stripe down the stretch to pull away for the 12-point victory.
Besides Greenleaf's 24, Lett added 12 points, while Quehl had a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Illinois College gets back into non-conference action for the final time this season on Dec. 30, hosting Millikin University at Sherman Gymnasium beginning at 2 p.m.
