Ancilla Falls in Opening Round
Harrison, AR –  Illinois Central beat Ancilla College 87-81 in the opening round of the National Junior College Athletic Association Women’s National Basketball tournament. It was the first appearance for the women’s basketball team in a national tournament.
The Lady Chargers are now playing for 7th place in the tournament and will meet Harcum Community College at 12 p.m. Thursday. Harcum lost 43-78 to #1 seeded Monroe College earlier in the day.
Ancilla used a couple of three-pointers from Hannah Stolte to build an 31-21 advantage early in the second quarter, but Illinois Central chipped away and took a 43-42 lead into halftime. They never trailed after that as the Lady Chargers battled foul trouble most of the night. But every time Illinois Central took a big lead Ancilla would whittle it back to four or five points. They got as close as 80-82 in the final minute with some key steals, but could not find the basket often enough.
Freshman LaRae Roscoe led Ancilla (25-6) with a game-high 23 points, four assists, and five rebounds. Brynda Krueger added 14 points and six rebounds and Karson Williams and Hannah Stolte each hit for 10 points.