Box Score
The Carthage College women's basketball team (16-3, 6-2 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin), ranked 18th in the Jan. 26 Women's Basketball Coaches Association/USA Today/ESPN NCAA Division III poll and 20th in the Jan. 26 “D3hoops.com” poll, stunned No. 1 Illinois Wesleyan University (18-1, 7-1 CCIW), 72-67, on Saturday, Jan. 30 at Tarble Arena in Kenosha, Wis.
Carthage led most of the first half, and the Lady Reds enjoyed a six-point lead at one point, 28-22, at 6:57. Illinois Wesleyan knotted things up, 31-31, with 52 seconds remaining and led by four at the break, 35-31. The Lady Reds tied the contest, 40-40, at 16:17 second half. The Titans took their last lead of the game, 43-42, at 14:32. Following a 43-43 tie at 14:07, Carthage took the lead to stay, 45-43, at 12:52 on a layup by Diana Jacklin. The Lady Reds opened up a 12-point lead, 55-43, at 9:38 and again at 57-45, at 8:41. Illinois Wesleyan wasn't quite done, however, as the Titans closed the gap to two points, 62-60, at 2:56. Carthage went back up by six, 66-60, at 1:59 on a pair of free throws by Dani Ripkey. The Lady Reds still led by six, 69-63, with 46 seconds to go before IWU pulled to within three, 70-67, at the 30-second mark on a layup by Karen Solari. Carthage's Katie Klemke nailed two free throws with two seconds on the clock to nail down the upset, 72-67.
Carthage shot 49 percent (22-45), while Illinois Wesleyan shot 41 percent (24-59). The Lady Reds out-rebounded the Titans by three, 34-31. Carthage's Diana Jacklin (So., Berwyn, Ill./Morton West) scored game-high 19 points on eight-of-16 field goals and three-of-six free throws, along with a team-high 10 rebounds. Rosie Dorn (Sr., Chicago, Ill./Wilmette-Regina Dominican) had 16 points and seven rebounds. Dani Ripkey (So., Deerfield, Ill.) scored 12 points, while Heather Gilmore (Sr., Des Moines, Iowa/Pleasant Hill-Southeast) chipped in 10 points. Nikki Preston led Illinois Wesleyan with 14 points, and Hope Schulte added 13 points.
“Illinois Wesleyan is so good,” said Carthage coach Tim Bernero, “and they're hard to play because of their defensive style. They're always within reach of winning. We worked on getting into an offensive rhythm, and we made the right decisions. I wouldn't say we played a perfect game, but we played very well. We competed, physically, much better than we did on Jan. 9 down there, and we made our free throws when they counted. We didn't get out-rebounded this time, and we made them take the three-pointer. When we got up by 12 points, I thought we were in pretty good shape, even though Illinois Wesleyan made a run at us. This win should be a big plus in our NCAA-resume. We want to be one of those top-10 or top-15 teams, both this year and down the road.”
The Lady Reds now have two wins this year over top-ranked teams. Carthage defeated Hope College, 51-47, on Dec. 28 at the Oglethorpe Holiday Classic in Atlanta, Ga. The Lady Reds travel to Wheaton, Ill., on Tuesday, Feb. 2 to play CCIW-opponent Wheaton College (Ill., 10-8, 4-4 CCIW) in a 7:30 p.m. game at King Arena.
