Late Knox surge tops Central women’s basketball team
PELLA—A young lineup made youthful mistakes down the stretch as the Central College women’s basketball team surrendered a 10-0 closing run in tumbling to Knox College (Ill.) 81-72 Saturday.
Down by as many as 10 points in the first half, the Dutch (2-1) fought their way to even at the half, 42-42. It was still tied after three periods, 60-60, and Central pulled ahead in the fourth period, grabbing a 72-71 advantage with 2:23 left on a drive by guard Maci Gambell (sophomore, Hedrick, Pekin HS). But the Dutch were scoreless the rest of the way.
“(Knox) made plays,” coach Joe Steinkamp said. “We didn’t get enough defensive stops. They shot it better from the perimeter than they had previously and that opened up the driving lanes for them. But I thought we fouled too much. They got to the line and took advantage of it.”
Knox (1-2) was 22 of 25 from the stripe. Meanwhile, Central had 20 turnovers and went cold from the field late, hitting just 25% in the fourth quarter, including an icy 1-of-10 from 3-point range.
“We have to make perimeter shots,” Steinkamp said. “We had chances to go on runs after we did get a stop and get a little momentum, but it didn’t happen.”
However, it was still another productive afternoon for one of the team’s lone veterans, senior post Kendall Brown (Moravia) who scored 21 points with seven rebounds.
Point guard Emily Hay (junior, Stanwood, North Cedar HS) had 14 points while Gambell added 13 points and five boards.
“Kendall continues to have a great year,” Steinkamp said. “Maci and Emily did a nice job as well.”
Freshman guard Kelsea Hurley (Scottsdale, Ariz., Desert Mountain HS) had nine points, six rebounds and six assists but also committed six turnovers.
Central was outshot 41.9% to 38.8% while the rebounds were even at 38-38.
Central travels to Jacksonville, Illinois to take on Illinois College in a first-ever meeting Wednesday in a 7:30 p.m. contest, part of a three-game week. The Lady Blues are 2-2 after a 75-52 rout of the University of the Ozarks (Ark.) Saturday.
“We’ve got a lot of games next week,” Steinkamp said. “Illinois College could be a similar team to Knox. They’re in the same league and picked to finish about the same. On the road it will be a good match-up for us.
“We’ve got to continue to grow. We are still so young. But being in pressure games like this will make us better in the long run.”
