GALESBURG, Illinois - The Prairie Fire women's basketball team defeated Illinois College 66-57 on Tuesday night for their third straight victory. The win moves them to 3-3 in the Midwest Conference (MWC).
Knox and IC played to an 11-11 tie through the first quarter, but the Lady Blues pulled away in the second period to take a 28-21 lead at halftime.
IC still led by nine early in the third quarter, but the Prairie Fire stormed back to take a 35-34 lead. The Lady Blues responded with a 6-0 run to end the quarter with a 40-35 lead.
Knox dominated the final period, outscoring IC 31-17 and cruising to victory.
Catessa Duran and Sarina Dacio led the comeback with 19 points apiece. Duran added nine rebounds. Saxon Alvarez added 10 points and Kristin Herndon narrowly missed a double-double with nine points and nine boards.
"We as a program are not done, we are just scratching the surface," said head coach Kira Mowen. "When you have a team that commits to buying into the game plan you will see more games like that. Everyone was bought in and I couldn’t be prouder as a coach. After some unfortunate setbacks we rallied and fought back. Best 4th quarter we have had in a long time. We were tough and gritty and tonight was our night. I thought down the stretch we did 3 things that helped us secure that victory. Get stops, hit shots, and make Free Throws. Very proud of these young women and their effort tonight."
The Prairie Fire will return to action on January 22 as they host Lake Forest.