The Forester women's basketball team was defeated 101-96 in
overtime at Monmouth College Tuesday night. Lake Forest fell to
15-7 overall and 11-4 in Midwest Conference play while the Fighting
Scots raised their overall record to 13-9 and league mark to
8-7.
Seniors Claire
Schmidt (Kankakee, Ill./Bishop McNamara) and Lisa Nassin
(Evergreen Park, Ill./Evergreen Park) led the visitors with 25
points apiece. It was the first time Forester teammates scored 25
or more points in the same game in more than eight seasons.
Schmidt, a forward, shot 9-for-15 from the field, pulled down a
game-high 12 rebounds, and dished out four assists. Nassin, a
center, added six rebounds and three steals.
Senior guard Kate
Grunauer (Chicago, Ill./Marist) and freshman guard Alex
Messacar (Saint Charles, Ill./Saint Charles North) also reached
double figures with 10 points apiece and combined to make five
three-pointers and record five steals. Grunauer also had a
game-high nine assists.
Lake Forest entered the week leading the nation with a .476 field
goal percentage but shot just 43.8 percent from the field on
Tuesday. The Foresters also made seven of 21 three-pointers and 25
of 32 free throws. Monmouth shot 48.6 percent fvrom the floor,
11-for-27 from beyond the arc, and 22-for-28 from the line. Lake
Forest out-rebounded the Scots 45-40 and committed 21 turnovers
while forcing 23.
A 21-4 Forester run in the opening period gave the visitors a
16-point advantage but the lead shrunk to eight points (38-30) by
halftime.
Monmouth closed to within a point early in the second half and
trailed by three when Lake Forest began a 9-0 run to take a 66-54
lead with 9:43 left on the clock. The two teams combined for 50
points - 31 by Monmouth - during the final nine minutes of
regulation. A running three-pointer by the Scots with 3.4 seconds
remaining tied the score at 85 and sent the game into overtime.
There were four ties and five lead changes in the first three
minutes of overtime but Monmouth shot 13-for-15 from the foul line
in the period and 4-for-5 from the charity stripe in the final
minute to close out the victory.
The Foresters will close out the regular season at home against
Illinois College on Saturday(February 20). The Senior Day, Alumni
Day, and Christine Neuman-Affourtit Memorial game will begin at
1:00 p.m. and a live video webcast will be available at
pennatlantic.com. The Foresters will also
be "Playing for a Cure" and raising funds
for the American Cancer Society.