JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – Carley Turnbull scored 24 of her 33 points in the first half to help Monmouth College open up a 10-point halftime lead and extend it in the second half for an 84-69 victory over the Illinois College women's basketball team on Wednesday night. The Fighting Scots remain undefeated at 8-0 (3-0 MWC), while IC drops to 3-6 (0-3 MWC).
Carly Cameron accounted for seven straight points for the Lady Blues early on in the first quarter, but the junior was sent to the bench after picking up her second foul with less than four minutes elapsed. In her absence, Monmouth attacked the paint and managed to hold a 21-18 lead after a high-scoring first quarter.
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Megan Price three-pointer two minutes into the second quarter put Illinois College on top, 25-23, but Monmouth's response was swift. An 8-0 run over the next two minutes gave the Fighting Scots the lead for good. From there it turned into The Turnbull Show, with the big Monmouth forward scoring 19 in the quarter to give the visitors a 49-39 halftime lead.
Cameron connected from long-range to open the scoring in the second half, making it 49-42, only for the offense to dry up for the next five minutes. By the time Illinois College had scored again, Monmouth had regained a double-digit advantage and went to the final quarter with a 66-50 edge.
There was a brief flash of hope early on in the fourth quarter as Illinois College tallied the first five points from
Sydney Lett,
Madi Peyton and
Sydney Himmelman, making it a 66-55 ballgame. With Cameron still battling foul trouble and eventually fouling out, however, the size advantage Monmouth enjoyed was too much to overcome. Seemingly every basketball for the Fighting Scots in the final quarter came inside, where Monmouth enjoyed a 48-30 edge in the contest.
Cameron led the Lady Blues on the night with 15 points and five rebounds before fouling out.
Brielle Greenleaf added 12 points and Peyton came off the bench to score 10 points.
The Lady Blues will return to action on Dec. 8, traveling to take on Cornell College at 3 p.m. in Mount Vernon, Iowa.
