Feb. 12, 2008

Box Score

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - Junior Jenna Mooberry hit a jumper, grabbed a rebound and hit six free throws down the stretch to seal an important 74-66 victory over Great Lakes Valley Conference foe Wisconsin-Parkside on Tuesday evening at Neil Carey Arena.

The Flyers (11-10, 7-7) shot a blistering 66.7 percent from the field in the first half, including connecting on 5-of-6 from long range. Defensively they limited the Rangers (14-8, 8-6) to just 36.7 percent shooting and held a dominating 22-10 rebounding edge in the first half. Early on the Rangers had no answer for the Flyers inside. Junior Lauren Martens notched eight points and seven rebounds in the first while freshman Jenny Turpel also had eight points and six boards. With the score tied at four the Flyers went on an 11-0 run to take command of the game. Lewis grabbed a 22 point lead, their largest of the game, on a jumper by Turpel with 4:34 left. With under a minute remaining the Rangers had shrunken the Flyers' lead to 16 but after a turnover by the Rangers' Amanda Gibson, Lewis stole the momentum back at the break with a wide open layup by sophomore Lauresha Hawkins.

The Rangers would storm back in the second but the Flyers always answered. After Wisconsin-Parkside cut the lead to nine with 14:22 left, Lewis went on a 10-2 run to take a 17-point lead. Martens had two baskets and Mooberry hit a big 3-pointer during the stretch. The Rangers fought back to get within a possession at 66-63 with 2:26 left. But Mooberry hit a key jumper from just outside the pain on a feed from Hawkins to get the lead back to two possessions. After a turnover by Gibson, Mooberry grabbed a key offensive board from a missed shot Martens shot. Mooberry was fouled and went to the line to add two free throws and put the game away. She added two more in the final 30 seconds to officially seal the victory.

Martens finished a rebound short of a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds. She also added two steals and an assist. Junior Kelly Dianis added 15 points, knocking down 3-of-4 from long range. Mooberry finished with 15 points, six boards and two assists. Turpel had eight points and eight rebounds. Lewis limited the conference leader in 3-pointers, the Rangers' Kayla Ming, to just two on eight attempts. Allison Smaglik finished with a game-high 16 points for the Rangers.

The win gives the Flyers a bit of revenge after the Rangers topped Lewis in overtime thriller earlier this season. The Flyers host Kentucky Wesleyan at 1:30 on Saturday in another important conference game.