Griffins Prevail over Red Devils, 69-56
EUREKA – Fontbonne got the best of Eureka at the Reagan Athletic Complex on Saturday, winning 69-56 to secure a season split with the Red Devils.
Playing their fifth game in seven days, Eureka struggled offensively, but the Red Devils still managed to stay within striking distance of the Griffins for most of the game. The maroon and gold stayed in the game by outrebounding the Griffins 42-39 and forcing 26 turnovers.
Olivia Falls (Bloomington, Ill./Bloomington) recorded a team-high 15 points and gathered a team-high eight boards. She tied with Shakaya Rogers (Hanover, Ill./Concord/Glen Oaks) for a team-high three assists and three steals.
Rogers, meanwhile, added 12 points and six boards, along with the three assists and three steals to finish with 12 points off the bench.
Despite foul trouble, Marissa Murphy (Canton, Ill./Canton) came off the bench and tallied nine points, two rebounds and two assists.
Savanah Moore (Clinton, Ill./Mt. Pulaski) and Abby Stotler (Wyoming, Ill./Stark County) each contributed six points. Moore grabbed seven rebounds and Stotler had six.
The Red Devils cut a 15-point deficit to eight points in the fourth quarter.
Murphy drilled a 3 off an assist by Rogers to make it a 10-point game with 5:35 left in the game, and made a jumper off another Rogers dish to do it again a little over a minute later.
Kourtney White answered with a layup for Fontbonne on the next play, but two possessions later, Moore hit a jumper off a Murphy assist to bring it back within 10 with 2:39 remaining.
With a little less than a minute and a half to play, Murphy made a steal off White and dished it to Stotler for a layup that made it an eight-point game.
In the final minute, Fontbonne put the game away at the line, making 7 of 8 foul shots to seal it.
White led the way for the Griffins, shooting 12-for-13 from the field to finish with a game-high 27 points and nine rebounds.
Rylee Stafford, the SLIAC's leading scorer, meanwhile, posted 21 points. The Red Devils limited her to 4-for-10 shooting from the field, but she made 10 of 10 free-throw opportunities.
Senior forward Jillian Venegas racked up a game-high 14 rebounds, along with eight points, three assists, two steals and one block.
On Monday, Eureka (9-12, 5-6) will turn around and host Blackburn (5-16, 3-8) at 5:30 p.m.
