MACOMB, Ill. – Sadie Webb tied a career-high with 15 points as three Fighting Leathernecks scored in double-figures in a 68-55 win over Centenary on Saturday, Dec. 4 at Western Hall.
In a game that stayed close throughout the first half, Western Illinois (1-6, 1-1 Summit) used a 10-0 run at the beginning of the second frame to jump out to a 12-point lead they would never surrender.
"We did some really good things defensively with our pressure tonight," said head coach Leslie Crane. "We're all extremely happy to get that first win of the season. The defensive pressure allowed us to not only disrupt what Centenary did but also really helped up the tempo of our offense."
The Ladies (0-5, 0-1) held the lead for the majority of the first half with their largest lead coming at five points twice in the first 20 minutes of play. Western trailed by three points (21-18) with 6:29 remaining before reeling off seven unanswered points to take a 25-21 lead.
Centenary used two three-point baskets to tie the game at 27-27 before a layup by Vashni Sharp-Moore pushed the Ladies in front 29-27 with 1:55 to go. Anne Borgertpoepping converted two free throws to tie the game before Brittany Demery hit a jumper with three seconds remaining to give the Leathernecks a 31-29 halftime lead.
"We came out a little flat in the first half," said Borgertpoepping. "It was really great to see us pick up the intensity in the second half and that's really what led us to the win."
Western Illinois would come out firing in the second half. Valencia Kelly's jumper at the 19:31 mark started a 10-0 run that put the Leathernecks up 41-29. Kelly and Michele Salvatori combined to score eight of the 10 points during the run.
It was all Western Illinois from there as the Leatherneck offense picked up its game. Jackie Rieger's layup at the 6:24 mark would give Western a 62-41 lead, its largest of the game.
Centenary would go on 12-1 run over the next three minutes to draw within 10 points (63-53) at the 3:32 mark, but was unable to overcome the double-digit deficit.
"I thought as a team we did a great job getting the ball into the post and running through our offensive sets," said Webb. "I think we had a little bit of an emotional hangover from the Oral Roberts game but after that wore off we really stepped up."
Webb finished the game with 15 points and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor and drained all four of her free throws. Kelly finished with 13 points on 5-for-12 shooting and Salvatori recorded her fourth-straight double-digit scoring output with 11 points.
Rieger grabbed a team-high seven rebounds while Demery snagged six. Borgertpoepping and Kelly each finished with four steals as the Leathernecks forced 28 Centenary turnovers.
As a team, Western Illinois shot 40.9 percent (27-for-66) from the floor and 61.1 percent (11-for-18) from the charity stripe. Centenary finished with a 42.6 (20-for-27) shooting percentage while firing 75.0 percent (9-for-12) from the line.
Ashley Jackson paced the Ladies with 17 points. Sharp-Moore added 15 and grabbed seven rebounds while Megan Daniel added 10 points and snagged six boards. The Leathernecks out-rebounded Centenary 43-28 and grabbed a season-high 17 offensive boards.
Western Illinois improved to 15-0 against Centenary in the all-time series. The Leathernecks will face in-state rival Bradley at 7 p.m. on Tuesday as part of a five-game homestand.
