Senior guard Kelsey Schmitt led all players with a season-high 22 points to lead the Forester women's basketball team to a 69-52 victory at Lawrence University on Saturday.
Schmitt shot 8-for-16 from the field, 3-for-6 on three-pointers, and 3-for-4 from the foul line. Freshman guards Kelsey Burton and Jaianna Brooks were next on the team with 15 and 12 points, respectively, and sophomore forward Molly Schoenlein added 10. Burton and Schoenlein shared game-high honors with eight rebounds apiece and Brooks led all players with five assists.
The Foresters shot 43.3 percent from the field while limiting Lawrence to just 31 percent. Both teams attempted 21 three-pointers with the visitors connecting five times and the Vikings twice. Lake Forest was outscored 14-6 at the foul line but out-rebounded the home team 43-33.
Schmitt scored nine points and Burton six in the first quarter and the Foresters led 15-12 after 10 minutes of play. All eight of Lake Forest sophomore guard Zaria Sydnor's point in the contest came in the second quarter as the visitors increased their lead to nine at 32-23 at halftime.
The Forester lead fluctuated between nine and 13 points for most of the third period. The Vikings closed to within seven late in the quarter before a layup by Burton and two free throws from Schoenlein made the score 52-41 going into the fourth. The margin was 11 again with six minutes to play before an 11-2 Lake Forest run made it a comfortable 20-point lead with just two minutes remaining and Lawrence scored the final three points of the contest.
The Foresters completed the regular season 12-13 overall and 9-7 in Midwest Conference play while Lawrence finished 7-18 overall and 5-11 in the league.
Lake Forest will be the #4 seed in next weekend's MWC Tournament, which will be hosted by co-champion Ripon College. The Foresters will take on the hosts in Friday's semifinal round.