GRINNELL, Iowa – After playing to overtime in their previous meeting, it's only fitting Grinnell College's women's basketball game against Illinois College Wednesday be another nail-biter.
And that's exactly what it was, as Grinnell led most of the way only to see the Lady Blues rally for a 72-67 victory at Darby Gymnasium. Last month, Grinnell outlasted Illinois College in overtime at Jacksonville, Ill.
Tyria Heath '21 led Grinnell with 19 points, eight rebounds and a career-best five assists.
Claire Collier '21 added a career-best 12 points and
Stephany Dos Santos '21 10 rebounds, also a career high.
Sofia Ahooja '22 came up with four assists for the Pioneers, who are 6-9 in the Midwest Conference and 10-12 overall, while
Kate Tomczik '22 and
Ellie Gubbrud '22 each blocked a shot.
The Lady Blues, 7-8 in the league and 11-11 in all games, got out to a six-point lead midway through the first period before Grinnell countered with a 16-3 run to go up by seven. Ahooja had a 3-pointer and layup in the span,
Kathryn Stender '21 and
Emmy Nyquist '23 added 3-pointers, Collier had a basket and free throw and Dos Santos a pair of free throws.
The Pioneers led 23-20 after one period and pushed their lead as big as 13 points in the second period before leading 39-31 at intermission.
The Lady Blues sliced into the lead in the third period and trailed just 52-49 at its conclusion. Grinnell maintained command most of the fourth period, going up by six on Collier's jumper at the 6:37 mark and using a huge trey by Collier at the 2:40 mark to stretch their lead to 64-60.
Illinois College eventually forced a 66-all tie with 1:23 left before the Pioneers got their final lead of 67-66 on Stender's free throw with 1:15 left. However, the Lady Blues countered with a basket and made their free throws down the stretch to secure the win. Free throw shooting was key for the Lady Blues, as they made 25-of-27 shots from the stripe for a 92.6 percent success rate.
Heath pushed her career free throw total to 233 during the game, which ranks ninth in program history. On the Pioneers' season chart, her 499 points rank fourth all-time and 115 free throws are fifth. As a team, Grinnell has 934 rebounds this season which is sixth in program history.
Grinnell finishes its 2019-20 home season Saturday when St. Norbert College visits Darby Gymnasium. The Senior Day game begins at 3 p.m.
