MONMOUTH, IL -- Freshman guard Carla Sweet (Waterloo,IL/Waterloo Gibault HS) scored 13 of her team-high 15 points in the second half to lead the Monmouth College women’s basketball team to a 61-59 victory over MacMurray in non-conference action at Glennie Gymnasium on Tuesday night.
Monmouth (4-3) was able to bounce back after a horrible first half, a 20-minute period which saw the Scots make 8 of 34 shots and score only 19 points. Neither team could generate any offense early on, both squads combining for only 14 points in the first ten minutes. MacMurray did not score its tenth point until 4:15 remained on the clock but Monmouth’s shooting troubles prevented them from taking advantage of the Highlanders’ mistakes.
Senior Kari Walters (Bushnell,IL/Bushnell-Prairie City HS), who finished with 10 points, gave the lead back to Monmouth at 24-22 just after the break and, after the two teams traded leads, MacMurray took their biggest lead at 41-36 with eight minutes left. Monmouth responded with six straight points to regain the lead and Sweet scored seven points in a two-minute stretch, the final two on a baseline shot to give the Scots a 59-56 lead with 40 seconds left on the clock. Following two free throws by Karen Valentas (Chicago,IL/McAuley) at 0:20, a desperation three-pointer gave the Highlanders a chance to tie the game at the buzzer but the shot attempt was wide. Valentas and Christy Keller (Crystal Lake,IL/Crystal Lake Central) each scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds.
The Scots’ final game before the Christmas holiday vacation will be a non-conference trip to Eureka on Thursday night. Monmouth returns home on January 8 to face Grinnell in their next Midwest Conference contest.