CHICAGO – Christina Jones' three-point jumper with 21.2 seconds left pulled Western Illinois within four, but the Fighting Leathernecks (3-8) were unable to complete a comeback at Loyola (6-4) on Wednesday, Dec. 22.
The Leatherneck offense carried the team for much of the first half as they led led from the 17:04 to the 3:55 mark before hitting a scoring drought that carried from the first half to the second.
Loyola used the drought to its advantage, going on an 18-0 run which began with just over three minutes remaining in the first half and finally ended with Jackie Rieger's layup at the 14:18 mark of the second half.
The Ramblers led by as many as 10 points (41-31) before Rieger's bucket, which ended nearly 11 minutes without a bucket for the Leathernecks.
Loyola would lead by as many as 15 points (62-47) with 3:33 remaining, but the Leathernecks mounted a comeback by using a 12-1 run to cut the lead to 63-59 with 23 seconds to go.
Monica Albano hit an insurance free-throw with 11 seconds remaining to seal the victory for the Ramblers and end Western's two-game win streak.
Both teams were impressive offensively in the first half as the Leathernecks shot 40.6 percent (13-for-32) from the floor. The Ramblers shot 50 percent (14-for-28) in the first half including 6-for-8 from the charity stripe.
Western's offense cooled in the second half as the Leathernecks shot just 29.2 percent (7-for-24) while Loyola shot 40.0 percent (10-for-25).
The Leathernecks finished the game with a 41-32 rebounding edge and shot 13-for-19 (68.4 percent) from the line. Jackie Rieger led Western with 12 points and seven rebounds while Jackie Barton scored 10.
Rebecca Henricson got her third straight start and set a career-high with eight points. Brittany Demery and Michele Salvatori each pulled down six boards.
Ellen Ayoub paced the Ramblers with a game-high 20 points while Monica Albano scored 17. Ayoub also finished as the game's top rebounder with eight boards.
The Leathernecks will return to action on Tuesday, Dec. 28 at Purdue in the last non-conference game of the year. The team will re-open league play at IUPUI on Dec. 31.
