JACKSONVILLE, Illinois – The Prairie Fire women’s basketball team improved their Midwest Conference record to 7-0 with a 72-68 victory over Illinois College on Tuesday. Knox took an early 14-8 lead in the first quarter and led 18-11 heading into the second period.
The Prairie Fire scored the first five points of the second quarter and led 42-27 by halftime.
The Lady Blues chipped away at the Knox lead in the third quarter and trailed by just five points with 2:55 left in the period. The Prairie Fire took a 55-46 lead into the final quarter.
The Prairie Fire maintained a double-digit lead in the early portion of the final period, but Illinois College stormed back and trailed just 70-68 with five seconds remaining in the game. Juliana Vinluan hit a pair of free throws to secure the Knox victory.
Kristin Herndon led the Prairie Fire with 21 points. She also grabbed seven rebounds. Sarina Dacio hit 3-of-7 from long-range for 13 points. Vinluan pitched in 10 points and Catessa Duran hauled in 10 boards along with seven points.
“We knew we would have a target on our back atop the conference standings,” said head coach Kira Mowen. “A string of road games gives us some tough matchups, but we were able to come out on top today. We will take it one game at a time and prepare for our next opponent.”
Knox will return to action on January 21 as they travel to Lake Forest.
