Box Score

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – One week after defeating Illinois Wesleyan 83-73 at home, Augustana was unable to repeat the result on the road. The Vikings dropped an 83-74 decision to the Titans on Wednesday, January 25 at the Shirk Center in Bloomington, Illinois.
 
A sluggish first quarter hampered Mark Beinborn's team as Illinois Wesleyan jumped off to a 22-12 lead after the first 10 minutes. In the second quarter Augustana battled back and cut the margin to a single point (30-29) at 4:25 on a rebound and bucket by senior Kaycee Kallenberger (Pleasant Valley HS, Bettendorf, Iowa). That capped a 17-6 run that got the Vikings back in the game.
 
At halftime the Titans led by four (43-39) and during a hotly contested third quarter Augustana took the lead at 58-56 with 1:52 left on a pair of free throws by senior Mikayla Fallon (United Township HS, East Moline, Ill.). However, the host finished the period on a 7-0 run to take a 63-58 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
 
The Vikings cut the lead to four points (64-60) early in the frame (9:40) but the margin never got below six points after that.
 
Sophomore Corrie Reiley (Prophetstown HS, Prophetstown, Ill.) led the way for Augustana with 18 points while seniors Jennifer VanWatermeulen (United Township HS, Silvis, Ill.) and Kaycee Kallenberger (Pleasant Valley HS, Bettendorf, Iowa) each had 14 and sophomore Izzy Anderson (Alleman HS, Rock Island, Ill.) dropped in 12.
 
Kallenberger led the team in rebounding with 12 as the Vikings pounded the Titans on the board (41-28). However, Augustana turned the ball over 22 times against the Titan pressure.
 
Illinois Wesleyan got 24 points from Maddie Merritt and 23 from Molly McGraw. The Titans shot .542 (32-59) from the field, including .563 (18-32) in the first half.
 
Augustana is now 13-5 overall and 6-3 in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin while Illinois Wesleyan is 12-6 and 7-2. The Vikings will travel to Kenosha, Wisconsin on Saturday, January 28 for a 5:00 p.m. battle with Carthage.