Red Devils Stay Steady, Best Iowa Wesleyan, 78-55

MOUNT PLEASANT, Iowa – The Eureka women's basketball team has had its share of pull-away wins this season.

The Red Devils notched another one as they topped Iowa Wesleyan 78-55 on the road in St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Wednesday.

It was the kind of night in which each quarter, the visitors put more and more distance between themselves and the home team. The Red Devils led by four after the first 10 minutes, went into halftime up by eight, extended the lead to 15 in the third quarter and finished with a 23-point win.

Now, the Red Devils are 8-4 on the season and 4-1 in SLIAC play, sitting at the top of the conference along with Spalding, Webster and Westminster.

Five EC players reached double figures in the win, with Ja'Keesha Hawkins (Peoria, Ill./Peoria) and Jadyn Mitchell (Flanagan, Ill./Flanagan-Cornel) each posting a team-high 17 points.

Hawkins, a senior, shot 7-for-13 from the field, hit one 3-pointer, gathered three rebounds and added three steals to her league-leading total. She and teammate Marissa Murphy (Canton, Ill./Canton) both have 32 swipes on the season.

Mitchell, a freshman, also shot 7-for-13 from the field and made 3 of 6 from deep while adding two steals and two boards.

Sophomore Olivia Falls (Bloomington, Ill./Bloomington) notched a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds, and freshman Whitney Bozarth (Normal, Ill./Normal West) contributed 12 points as well.

Senior Ashley Harfst (Saunemin, Ill./Pontiac) also posted a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds, while classmate Kennedy Dura (Edwards, Ill./Brimfield) distributed six assists.

Iowa Wesleyan's Morgan McCrea racked up a game-high 22 points on 9-of-18 shooting from the field and 4-of-11 shooting from distance. Teammate Allie Massner followed with 11 points.

The Red Devils shot 45.5 percent from the field, never dipping below 40 percent in a single quarter and reaching 50 in the third quarter.

Eureka forced 22 turnovers, outscored the Tigers 48-14 in the paint and finished one board short of an even rebound battle at 37-38.

With a third SLIAC road win under their belt, the Red Devils (8-4, 4-1 SLIAC) will look to make it four in four tries on Saturday when they take on Fontbonnne (4-8, 3-2 SLIAC) on the road at 1 p.m.