The Prairie Fire women's basketball team came away with the 69-65 win on Wednesday night.
Knox jumped out to a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter and led 19-12 entering the second period.
The Rams scored the first four points of the second quarter, but the Prairie Fire responded with a 4-0 run of their own. Knox held onto a 31-24 lead at the half.
Cornell used a 7-0 run to begin the second half to tie the game. Knox built up a seven point lead and led 48-45 heading into the final period.
The Prairie Fire maintained their lead until the Rams tied the game at 53-53 with 6:32 to play. Cornell took a 55-53 lead soon after, but Knox scored five straight to retake the lead. After a 60-60 tie, the Rams hit a trey. Sarina Dacio responded the next time down the floor with a three to force another tie. The teams traded layups, but a foul by Cornell gave Kylee Callahan the chance for a three-point play and she converted the free throw with 2:25 on the clock. The Prairie Fire hit three more free throws in the final minutes to earn the victory.
Brian Medina led Knox with 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting. Dacio added 15 points thanks to a 4-for-7 showing from long-range. Kylee Callahan tallied 12 points, seven steals, and six assists. Loraya Rocha chipped in 10 points and seven rebounds.
"This was a great bounce back game after a tough loss last time out," said head coach Seth McDowell. "Cornell is a very good team and they gave us a great game. We did not shoot well at the line and need to shore up that part of our game to win some of our upcoming games. We found a way to win and that's all that matters."
The Prairie Fire will return to action as they host Lake Forest on January 20 for Basketball Homecoming.