Forester senior forward K.C. Stralka led all players in the game with 11 rebounds and four assists but the Lake Forest College women's basketball team was defeated 68-48 by visiting Cornell College Wednesday night.
Stralka reached double figures in rebounds for the 13th time this season and she became just the eighth player in program history to surpass 200 boards in a season. Her 208 on the year rank tied-for-fifth in team annals and her career total of 522 is also eighth in school history.
Junior forward Brittany Avonts and senior guard Michelle Ricolcol tied for team-high honors with eight points apiece. Avonts added seven rebounds as the home team finished the contest with a 47-37 edge on the boards.
Cornell shot 39 percent from the field and held Lake Forest to just 27.4 percent. Both teams were 5-for-19 on three-pointers and the Rams outscored the home team 17-9 at the free throw line. The Foresters committed 25 of the game's 37 turnovers.
The visitors scored the game's first five points and led the rest of the way. Lake Forest trimmed the margin to two points at 5-3 and later in the opening period at 11-9. Cornell led 15-9 after 10 minutes of play and pulled ahead by as many as 10 points in the second quarter, which ended with the score 30-22 in favor of the Rams.
Cornell led by 12 points early in the third but four different Foresters scored during a 10-0 run that made the score 34-32. The Rams responded with nine straight points and led by a dozen with a period to play. Cornell scored the first nine points of the fourth quarter and led by at least 17 the rest of the way.
The loss dropped the Foresters' overall record to 11-11 and Midwest Conference mark to 9-8. Cornell improved to 18-4 overall and 15-2 in the league.
Lake Forest is now tied with Ripon College for fourth place in the conference standings. The Foresters defeated the Red Hawks in their only meeting of the season to a victory over visiting Carroll University or a Ripon loss to Knox College on Saturday would make Lake Forest one of the four teams competing in next weekend's MWC Tournament. Saturday's contest will be the final home game for Stralka and fellow Forester senior Michelle Ricolcol.
