Freshman guard Katie Neher led Lake Forest with a season-high six assists and was one of four players on the team to score in doubles figures in a 97-92 overtime loss at Illinois College on Saturday.
Neher finished with 18 points while junior guard Kelsey Burton scored a game-high 24 and sophomore guard Meona Feather and senior guard Zaria Sydnor added 22 and 13, respectively. Feather, who shot 5-for-9 from three-point range, led the visitors with seven rebounds and Burton with five steals.
Lake Forest matched the second-best free throw shooting performance in program history by knocking down 17 of 18 foul shots in the contest. Both teams shot 44 percent from the field and connected nine times from beyond the arc. Despite the Foresters' free throw percentage, the Lady Blues outscored their guests by 11 from the line as Lake Forest accounted for 29 of the 47 fouls in the game. Illinois College also had a commanding 49-32 edge in rebounds but committed 28 of the 50 turnovers on the evening.
The Foresters led by as many as 11 points in the first quarter and by 12 in the second. They took a 43-34 lead into the locker room at the half.
A three-pointer by Feather restored the visitors 12-point advantage at 61-49 with 2:43 to play in the third. Illinois College, however, outscored Lake Forest 15-0 over the next four-and-a-half minutes to take a three-point lead of its own. The rest of regulation was close, with the score tied five times, the last at 78 at the end of regulation.
Lake Forest scored the first two points of overtime but the lead changed hands five times in the period, the last on a Lady Blue three-pointer with 1:41 to play. The home team shot 6-for-8 from the line down the stretch to stay ahead and secure the victory.
The Foresters are now 11-11 overall this season and 8-7 in Midwest Conference play. Illinois College improved to 12-11 overall and evened it league mark at 8-8.
Lake Forest will play next at Ripon College Tuesday night at 7:30.