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P.K. Hall
Cory Hall
43
Grinnell GC 8-13,5-9 Midwest Conference
54
Winner Illinois Col. IC 10-12,7-6 Midwest Conference
Grinnell GC
8-13,5-9 Midwest Conference
43
Final
54
Illinois Col. IC
10-12,7-6 Midwest Conference
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Grinnell GC 7 8 8 20 43
Illinois Col. IC 13 9 13 19 54

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Ted Schultz

Monstrous fourth-period rally by GC women's basketball team comes up just shy

JACKSONVILLE, Ill. - For the second game in a row, Grinnell College's women's basketball team put together a monstrous fourth-period rally before coming up just shy in a Midwest Conference contest.

After scoring just 23 points in the first three quarters combined and trailing by as many as 15 in that span, the Pioneers erupted for 20 in the final frame before Illinois College eked out a 54-43 win Wednesday night.

Erin Lillis '24 was electric for Grinnell, scoring more than half the team's points with 22. That included a dominating 16 points in the fourth period alone.

Sara Booher '25 and P.K. Hall '25 added seven rebounds apiece for Grinnell (8-13, 5-9 MWC), while Hall also had a career-best two blocks. In the assists department, Skylar Thomas '26, Grace Marsh '25 and Nikki Ware '25 had two each.

Grinnell had a tough time from the field, making just 27.6 percent of its shots despite a strong 46.7 percent showing in the fourth quarter. The Pioneers were also 20.7 percent from 3-point land and 41.7 percent from the charity stripe.

Illinois College (10-12 7-6 MWC) led 13-7 after one period and 22-15 at halftime. The Lady Blues extended their lead to 35-23 after three periods.

It looked like the hosts would cruise from there, maintaining and even building their lead to 11 points with 2:59 left.

But the Pioneers refused to fold. Lillis connected on a 3-pointer, the Pioneers forced a turnover and Lillis sank two free throws to make it a 46-40 game with 2:19 left.

After a miss by the Lady Blues and rebound by Marsh, Lillis again drained a trey to bring Grinnell within 46-43 at the 1:53 mark. But that's as close as the visitors would get, as Illinois College got a layup and four free throws down the stretch and the Pioneers missed their final four shots.

Grinnell returns to Darby Gymnasium next Tuesday to entertain Beloit College. Tip-off is 5:30 p.m.
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