Defensive Mistakes and Fouls Accumulate in Elmhurst Loss to North Central
North Central College women’s basketball defeated Elmhurst University 71-61 in a nail-biting contest at RA Faganal Hall on Jan. 24, with the help of clutch shooting, miscues on defense from the Bluejays, and drawn fouls.
For the Bluejays, this was one they would’ve liked to win, as not only is North Central their biggest rival, but they are entering a pivotal final stretch of the season with only eight games remaining. Every game matters if they are looking to secure a CCIW tournament spot, and possibly a playoff push.
North Central takes this as a solid win, as they improve to 12-6 on the season and 6-3 within the conference, along with strengthening their chances at a CCIW tournament spot.
“It’s big, we knew we were head to head in the standings with them,” said North Central head coach Maggie McCloskey-Bax. “We got [sic] a rough week next week, so this one is huge.”
From the tip off, the Cardinals immediately opened up the scoring with a drive to the basket from center Biz Daly. The Jays started off slowly, as North Central’s defense held them scoreless for the first three minutes of the game.
Daly, along with rebounds by Jocelyn Trotter, combined to give North Central an early 6-0 lead over the Jays.
North Central continued to extend their lead in the first quarter as Kennedy Hartwig scored a mid-range 2-point shot off a steal, along with a late 3-pointer to extend their lead to nine going into the second quarter. Although the Bluejays responded with ten points in the first, the Cardinals maintained the lead at 10-19 heading into the second quarter.
“They’re very active on all of their catches, so everyone on the perimeter has to be able to defend,” said EU head coach Cameron Tucker. “Offensively we kind of struggled to keep up with them.”
The second quarter saw the Jays find some better rhythm offensively as they relied on long range shooting to cut into North Central’s lead. Guard Jacy Fierst was subbed in for Anna Kleszynski and hit a 3-pointer along with Natalie Harty. Kristin Bukata continued to provide assists and rebounds as the team went 4-8 from the 3-point line.
Despite their improved scoring, North Central maintained a slight edge over EU at the break leading 29-28.
“Once we kind of got composed, my teammates did a great job motivating me and helping me keep pushing down the stretch,” said Bukata, who recorded 40 minutes of playing time.
Coming out of the locker room, Bluejays struck first with a block by Natalie Robinson after being subbed in for Jacy Fierst, along with a quick 3-point shot by Natalie Harty to take their first lead of the game, 31-29.
Harty came second on the team in points scored with 12. As a whole the team was led by Sierra Gibson, who had 13 total points. Jocelyn Trotter led North Central offensively by a wide margin, scoring 22 total points and the most by any player from either team.
“Trotter’s a great player, our goal was to limit her and see what we could do off of that,” said Natalie Harty.
A pair of free-throws by Alaya Redditt, along with a clutch 3-point shot from Dolly Smith, extended North Central’s lead, with the Cardinals leading the game only 43-40 heading into the fourth quarter.
This gave EU some hope, as North Central is the number one scoring offense in the CCIW with 1,307 points.
“For three quarters, I was very impressed with our defense to hold them to 40 points through three,” said Tucker. “If we can continue to do that, we’re going to be in pretty good shape.”
North Central only continued to apply pressure in the fourth. Ameli Sanchez, who finished with eight points along with four rebounds, got North Central going early with a layup before Trotter was fouled by Natalie Robinson, with Trotter sinking both free-throws.
Momentum also swung in North Central’s direction as Daly hit a clutch three to put the Cardinals back on top, and the visiting stands roared with excitement.
“We’re always an away team at our own place,” Tucker said. “Every team we play has more fans than us. We’re improving, and I wish more people were here to see that.”
With just over four minutes remaining, Daly went to the line and sank both free-throws to extend North Central’s lead to nine.
EU cut into North Central’s lead near the final moments with a steal from Sierra Gibson and a 3-pointer from Anna Kleszynski; however, it just wasn’t enough, as North Central’s defense shut them down late to secure the 71-61 victory.
