Women’s Basketball Drops Road Game at SIU
The Valpo women’s basketball team fell Saturday afternoon at Southern Illinois, 97-59, as the Beacons continued Missouri Valley Conference play.
How It Happened
– A mid-range jumper from Allia von Schlegell (Downers Grove, Ill./Nazareth Academy) with 2:45 to play in the first quarter had the Beacons within 14-11 before SIU closed the period on a 13-2 run —including six points in the final minute — to lead 27-13 at the end of the first.
– After the Salukis opened the second quarter on a 7-2 run to extend their lead to 19, Valpo battled back to within 12 with four minutes to play in the first half on a layup from Kayla Preston (Omaha, Neb./Millard North).
– SIU outscored the Beacons 13-7 over the remainder of the quarter to take a 52-34 lead into halftime.
– Valpo scored three points on its first possession of the third quarter before SIU went on a 18-3 run over the next six-plus minutes to pull away. The Salukis led 74-44 with 10 minutes to play.
Inside the Game
– von Schlegell led the Beacons with 15 points, including a perfect 6-for-6 day from the foul line. It was the freshman’s ninth time scoring in double figures this season and the sixth time she has paced Valpo in that department.
– von Schlegell was the lone Valpo player in double digits, as its next leading scorer was Fiona Connolly (South Burlington, Vt./Brewster Academy [La Salle]) with nine points.
– Milana Nenadic (Kitchener, Ontario/Cameron Heights [Idaho State/Maine]) and Kayla Sullivan (St. Louis, Mo./Lutheran North [State Fair C.C.) tied for team-high honors with seven rebounds apiece. For Sullivan, that marked a season high.
– Preston blocked a pair of shots as the Beacons tied their season best with six rejections.
– Valpo shot 36.2% from the floor for the game, while SIU hit at a 50.7% clip. The Beacons hit just 2-for-19 from 3-point range.
– One game after scoring a season-best 15 second-chance points, Valpo converted 11 offensive rebounds into 13 second-chance points Saturday.
– After coming off the bench for the first 58 appearances of her collegiate career, Preston made her first career start Saturday. Her insertion into the lineup created Valpo’s eighth different starting five of the year, as 10 different Beacons have started at least one game.
Next Up
Valpo (0-17, 0-6 MVC) continues MVC play next Thursday evening at Illinois State. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.