Feb. 28, 2010

Box Score

Box Score in PDF Format

EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Lewis limited Southern Indiana to just 30.4 percent (17-of-56) shooting, took a lead as large as 11 and held off a USI run in the final minute to defeat the Screaming Eagles 56-54 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Quarterfinals on Sunday. The win puts Lewis in the GLVC Semifinals for the second consecutive season.

The loss was USI's first to a conference opponent at home this season and snapped their five-game win streak.

Lewis led the majority of the game, only trailing in the game's initial minutes. The Flyers had an 11-point lead in both halves but had to withstand several USI runs.

Lewis by just five points with 12 minutes remaining when junior Kelly Monaco (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) made back-to-back 3-pointers help keep Lewis in control. USI again cut it to six with fewer than five minutes remaining when Monaco made another important 3-pointer.

Lewis led 54-50 with two minutes remaining when the Flyers killed a 1:08 off the clock thanks to offensive rebounds by sophomore Devon Carbaugh (Sterling, Ill./Sterling), chasing down her own miss, and junior Jenny Turpel (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg). Senior Kelly Dianis (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) followed with a pair of free throws to give Lewis their final points of the game and make it 56-50 with 52 seconds remaining.

Following a USI layup, USI's press forced a Lewis turnover. The Screaming Eagles followed with a pair of free throw to cut the Lewis lead to two. Dianis missed the front end of a one and one on Lewis' possession to give USI the chance to knot it up.

The Screaming Eagles' Ellen Young took the ball to the basket but couldn't convert inside. It looked like Carbaugh had a key defensive board, but Young also had her hands on the ball. The possession arrow gave the ball back to USI with seven seconds remaining. The Screaming Eagles went inside again only to have Turpel knock the ball out of bounds with two seconds left. Lewis defense forced an inbounds pass to the wing. Rinesha Soaper's last second 3-point attempt was off the mark and the clock hit all zeros.

Turpel finished with 18 points and 14 rebounds. Monaco and Carbaugh each added nine points while Carbaugh totaled nine rebounds. Dianis totaled seven points.

The difference in the game came down to Lewis out-shooting USI 41.8 percent to 30.4 percent.

"You don't always know if you're going to have a good shooting day, but you can always sustain your intensity on your defensive end." head coach Lisa Carlsen said. "I thought today we didn't take a defensive possession off."

Both teams had 11 offensive rebounds, but the Flyers scored 12 points off their offensive boards while USI had just two second chance points.

"We didn't control the offensive glass, but we made sure they didn't get good second chance opportunities," Carlsen said. "That is a credit to everyone."

The win advances Lewis to the GLVC Semifinals next weekend on the campus of Illinois-Springfield. The Flyers will face Drury at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. Lewis defeated Drury last season in the GLVC Quarterfinals but lost this season at Drury 75-72. Should the Flyers win they would face either Indianapolis or UW-Parkside in the GLVC Championship.

USI falls to 22-8 while Lewis is 18-11.