MARION, IND. – No. 4 Indiana Wesleyan women’s basketball claimed the Crossroads League Tournament title on Tuesday evening, downing No. 12 Marian 64-58. Lilli Frasure led the Wildcats with 17 points and 9 rebounds, Jade Nutley added 14 points on 6-9 shooting and Taylor Folkema had a near double-double with 13 points and 8 assists to lead the Wildcats to their fourth Crossroads League Tournament Championship in the past five seasons

THE ESSENTIALS

• Location: Marion, Ind. | Luckey Arena
• Records: IWU: 29-2, 16-2 | MU: 23-7, 15-3
• NAIA Top-25 Rankings: IWU – #2 | MU – #12

WHAT HAPPENED

• IWU used a strong defensive performance to start the game, forcing 6 turnovers and holding Marian to 33% shooting on their way to a 15-10 lead after the first quarter. The red and gray shot 6-13 from the field and committed just 1 turnover in the frame.
• The defense kept it going in the second quarter, forcing 6 more turnovers as Indiana Wesleyan extended their lead by 4 in the quarter despite the Knights converting on 45.5% of their shots. The offense had trouble holding on to the ball in the frame, committing 8 turnovers, but the squad knocked down 7-13 shots to offset the turnovers.
• Both offenses struggled to find momentum coming out of half as both teams shot 5-14 and hit 1 three. MU cut into the lead slightly by knocking down 2 more free throws, entering the final quarter down 7.
• The Wildcats pushed their lead to 15 with just under 5 minutes left in the game, but he Knights went on a 14-3 run to cut the lead to 4 with 6 seconds left. A pair of free throws from Lilli Frasure gave IWU a little breathing room and the defense kept Marian from getting a final shot off to secure the Crossroads League Tournament title.

 

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• 312: With 3 steals, Lilli Frasure reached 312 for her career and just 3 more from tying NAIA Hall of Famer Liz Howerth’s program record
• 8: Taylor Folkema’s 8 assists were a career high and were instrumental in keeping the Wildcat offense in system.
• 34:  Despite Marian beating IWU in most statistical categories, the Wildcats found an advantage inside with 34 paint points to MU’s 30. Indiana Wesleyan held a 20-10 advantage at halftime.

 

KEY WILDCATS

• Lilli Frasure: 17 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals
• Jade Nutley: 14 points, 6-9 FG,  2-3 3PT
• Taylor Folkema: 13 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds.