Goodrich leads scoring in Scots loss to Lady Blue
Ryan Phillips - Sports Editor
The Monmouth College women’s basketball team fell to Illinois College, 86-68, last Wednesday at Glennie Gymnasium.
The Scots (5-16, 2-10 Midwest Conference) got off to a strong start, leading 3-2 early with a three-pointer from Ella Goodrich. Delaney Scheidenhelm added a layup, followed by another three from Goodrich to give the Scots an 8-2 lead.
“I think our chemistry as a team has gotten better,” Averi Rangel said.
However, Illinois College’s Jayln Patterson sparked a run, scoring a fast-break basket to cut the lead. Kynlee Stearns kept the Scots within range, but the Lady Blue (11-10, 8-4 MWC) went on a nine-point run to take a 14-11 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Illinois College led 20-15 heading into the second quarter, and Monmouth briefly regained the lead at 21-20 after Scheidenhelm, Goodrich, and Brooklyn Sellers each scored two points. The Lady Blue responded with a strong push and led 42-33 at halftime.
“We just needed to tighten up on defense and go back to fundamentals of being proactive,” Rangel said. “Coach tells us that defense is going to produce things on offense so that was our main focus going into the second half.”
The Scots came out strong in the third quarter, as Ashley Jones cut the lead to 44-35 with an early layup. But Patterson, who finished with a game-high 32 points, drained a three-pointer to extend Illinois College’s lead to 47-35. Stearns and Rangel helped Monmouth close the gap to 47-41 after two quick threes, but the Lady Blue kept up the pressure and entered the final quarter with a 67-54 lead.
In the fourth quarter, Patterson continued to dominate, scoring throughout and sealed the win for Illinois College. Goodrich was the top scorer for the Scots with 18 points.
Monmouth looks to bounce back on Saturday, when they travel to Ripon College for a 1 pm tipoff.
