ELMHURST, Ill. – Augustana outscored Elmhurst 21-7 in the third quarter Monday, breaking a halftime tie and going on to a 66-56 win over the Bluejays at Faganel Hall. The victory, in a contest postponed by inclement weather last Monday, lifted Coach
Mark Beinborn's club to 3-1 on the season and in the CCIW. Elmhurst fell to 1-2 overall and in the league.
Macy Beinborn (Pleasant Valley HS, Bettendorf, Iowa) scored the Vikings' first eight points of the second half. Her three-pointer a minute and a half into the third period broke the final tie, giving her team a 35-32 lead. After Taylor Harazin scored to pull the Bluejays within a point, a conventional three-point play by Beinborn sparked an 8-0 Augustana run that stretched the margin to 43-34. A
Hannah Simmer (Rock Island HS, Rock Island, Ill.) three-pointer at the 4:24 mark extended the advantage to 10 (46-36) and two
Gabriela Loiz (Assumption HS, Davenport, Iowa) free throws eventually gave the visitors a 51-37 advantage after three quarters.
Another Beinborn trey with 3:35 to play matched the Vikings' biggest lead of the night at 60-45 before Elmhurst scored nine straight over the next 1:16 to draw within 60-54. However,
Kylie Jozwik (Lakes HS, Lindenhurst, Ill.) drilled a triple at the one-minute mark and Augustana hit three of four free throws down the stretch to keep the Bluejays at bay.
Beinborn opened the game with a three-pointer and her second, with 2:17 left in the first quarter off a feed from
Justice Edell (Rock Island HS, Milan, Ill.), gave the Vikings a 13-8 lead. Elmhurst scored the final six points of the period, though, to go up 14-13 after one.
Kelly Weyhrich started the second quarter with a trey and the Bluejays eventually went up by six (23-17) on a pair of Weyhrich free throws midway through the period. Augustana whittled away, tying it at 28-all on an Edell three-pointer 49 seconds before halftime. Courtney O'Donnell answered with a bucket that put the hosts back on top, but Beinborn's putback just before the halftime buzzer made it 30-all at the break.
Beinborn equaled her career high with 19 points, connecting on seven of 13 from the field and four of nine from beyond the arc. Loiz reached double figures as well, with 10 points.
Lauren Hall (Rock Island HS, Rock Island, Ill.) scored eight and grabbed a game-high dozen rebounds and Edell finished with nine points and five assists. O'Donnell led Elmhurst with 17 points.
The Vikings finished 23 of 60 (.383) from the field, eight of 29 (.276) from three-point range and 12 of 19 (.632) at the foul line. They held the Bluejays to .333 (20-60) shooting from the field, including .174 (4-23) from beyond the arc. Elmhurst converted 12 of 18 (.667) free throw attempts. Augustana led on the glass 44-38 and committed 24 turnovers to 21 for the hosts.
Next up for the Vikings is a trip to Decatur, Illinois to face Millikin on Thursday, February 4 at 7:00 p.m.
