Colorado Springs, Colo. - A day after being held to a season-low 41 points against Colorado College, the Illinois Tech women's basketball team had a better offensive showing against Willamette Saturday afternoon in their final game in the Rocky Mountain Thanksgiving Classic. But it wasn't enough to overcome the Bearcats offense, as Willamette defeated the Scarlet Hawks 91-58. The Hawks stand at 1-5 on the young season. The Bearcats improved to 2-4.

A slow start for the Scarlet Hawks set the tone for much of the game, as the Hawks trailed 25-6 after one quarter. The Bearcats were able to use their height advantage throughout the game to out-rebound the Scarlet Hawks 51-33, while posting a 46-24 advantage in points in the paint. Willamette also finished with four players in double figures in scoring.

The Scarlet Hawks leave Colorado having faced tough competition to prepare the team for conference play, which is right around the corner. Additionally, the Hawks found some success at the free throw line during this trip, as they made 24 of 29 shots from the line over both games, good for 83%.

First Half (Willamette 42 - Illinois Tech 27)
A turnover by Willamette and a subsequent fast-break layup by Kaya Jones tied the game 4-4 for the Scarlet Hawks at the 7:35 mark of the first quarter. But a 15-0 run by the Bearcats had the Hawks facing a 19-4 deficit with just over four minutes to play in the opening quarter. The Bearcats closed out the quarter with a 6-2 run to lead 25-6 heading into the second quarter.

The Scarlet Hawks responded in the 2nd quarter with their best quarter of the game. The Hawks were down by 26 points at 37-11 with 5:40 remaining in the period. From there, the Scarlet Hawks used a 16-5 run to close out the quarter, and pull within 15 points at 42-27. Chloe Churilla led the Scarlet Hawks with 10 points in the first half while drawing 5 fouls against her opponents.

Second Half (Willamette 49 - Illinois Tech 31) 
The Scarlet Hawks were never able to gain any traction in the second half. After Willamette opened the third quarter with a 6-0 run, the Hawks responded with a 6-0 run themselves, courtesy of a Julia Bucci three-pointer and a Bucci layup and free throw at 8:17, trailing 48-33. The Bearcats overwhelmed the Hawks the remainder of the quarter however, using a 26-8 run to head into the fourth quarter leading 73-41. After the Bearcats tacked onto their lead to start the final quarter, the Scarlet Hawks finished the game on a 13-5 run over the final 4:46. Bucci led the Hawks in second-half scoring with 9 points.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

• Chloe Churilla led the Scarlet Hawks with 13 points, including 7-8 on free throws. She also pulled down 5 rebounds.
• Kaya Jones added 10 points while leading the team with 6 rebounds and 3 steals.

Bearcats Watch

• Carolyn Ho led all scorers with 22 points, shooting 10 of 12 from the field, while leading with 5 steals.
• Emma Floyd added 16 points, including 4-11 from three, along with 4 steals.

Inside The Box Score

• The Scarlet Hawks shot 78% on free throws(14-18), while the Bearcats were 4-10 for 40%.
• The Bearcats bench outscored the Scarlet Hawks bench 30-17.

Up Next
The Scarlet Hawks return home Saturday, December 2nd, when they host Alverno College at 1:00 PM at the Keating Center in their Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference opener.