Conference leader shoots down Eureka

MOUNT PLEASANT, lowa – Eureka College women's basketball junior guard Kelsey Forsythe (Pleasant Plains, Ill./Pleasant Plains [Lincoln Land CC]) scored a season-high nine points, but current St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference leader Iowa Wesleyan got a game-high 25 points from Rachel Williams en route to an 85-50 victory over the Red Devils, Saturday afternoon in Ruble Arena.

The Tigers built an early 10-2 lead in quarter one, but the Red Devils battled back to cut the deficit to two, 14-12, behind three-point field goals by sophomore Krysten Wallace (Bartonville, Ill./Limestone) and freshman Samantha Sarnes (Havana, Ill./Havana) to end the first.
 
IWU began the second quarter with a quick 7-0 run to build a 21-12 advantage at the 6:55 mark before a three-point field goal by Forsythe ended the Red Devil's drought. After three minutes of scoreless action, both teams exchanged a pair of three-pointers to make the score 30-21 with 2:41 left until halftime. The Tigers pushed their lead to 13 points, 36-23, at the break backed by a 6-2 spurt to close out the first half.
 
From there, the Tigers held Eureka at bay throughout the second half. IWU continued to add to their advantage, building a sizable 65-36 lead after three quarters of play.
 
Iowa Wesleyan was red hot from the field for the entirety of the contest, closing out the final quarter with an 85-50 edge. The Tigers made 32 of 61 field goals for a 52.5 percent mark with eleven of 22 coming from beyond the arc.
 
Senior forward Faith Williams (Robinson, Ill./Robinson) scored her first basket of the season at the 2:24 mark in the fourth quarter.
 
Eureka College Statistics, Leaders
Field Goal Percentage -.321 (17-53)
3-Point Field Goal Percentage - .333 (9-27)
Free Throw Percentage - .583 (7-12)
Forsythe (9 points, 1 steal)
Sarnes (7 points, 2 rebounds)
Emily Camden (6 points, 1 steal)

Iowa Wesleyan University Statistics, Leaders
Field Goal Percentage - .525 (32-61)
3-Point Field Goal Percentage - .500 (11-22)
Free Throw Percentage - .833 (10-12)
Williams (25 points, 7 assists)
Dakota Flesner (18 points, 4 assists)
Amiee Iverson (11 points, 5 steals)

What's Next?
Eureka will continue their conference road swing on Wednesday with a 6 p.m. matchup in St. Louis, Mo. against the Fontbonne Griffins.