MILWAUKEE, WIS. - The Western Illinois Fighting Leathernecks faced Marquette in nonconference action Sunday (Dec. 21) afternoon inside the Al McGuire Center. The Golden Eagles used a key 15-0 run in the second half to pull away from the Leathernecks, 65-57. Western Illinois falls to 6-5 on the season while Marquette improves to 4-7 with the victory. 

Ashley Luke, the reigning Summit League 'Player of the Week', recorded her third straight double-double (fourth this season) as she paced the Purple and Gold with 17 points and 12 rebounds.

"When Marquette made the run to take the lead, we could not respond even though we took good shot after good shot," said head coach JD Gravina. "The thing was, they were all three-pointers, and when you are forced to take so many threes its tough. I would have liked to get a few more touches inside, but we were not scoring the ball down low. They had a couple of players who were 6-5 and 6-3 down in the post to make it tough. Its hard because those were all good shots and normally you would hit two or three of those and we would have a really good chance to win the game. Defensively, except for a minute or two here and there, I thought we played well enough to win the game."

Senior Tori Niemann drove into the lane for a layup to give Western a 48-43 lead with just under 10 minutes left in the game, but Marquette would storm back to take a control of the contest. Over the next 4:39, the Golden Eagles used a 15-0 run to take a 10 point advantage. During the stretch, Western missed a total of nine straight shots with six of the attempts coming from beyond the arc.

Michelle Maher knocked down a three-pointer with just over two minutes left to cut the Marquette lead to five, but the Golden Eagles connected on five-of-six from the free throw line to secure the victory.

The Leathernecks struggled to score in the second half as they made just eight field-goals, and shot 4-of-19 from beyond the arc. Luke, Western's leading scorer, was held without a field goal in the second half, after shooting 7-of-12 from the field in the first half. A native of nearby Oak Creek, Wisconsin, Luke extended her streak of scoring in double-figures to 48 consecutive games.

The opening 20 minutes was a back-and-forth affair, with the Leathernecks jumping out to an quick 8-0 start. Luke recorded three straight jumpers in the paint and Niemann added a layup over the first three minutes to force a timeout by Marquette. The Golden Eagles responded with a 12-3 run to take their first lead of the half. The advantage wouldn't last long, as a Farrow triple put the Purple and Gold back in front by a point.

Farrow, one of four players on the roster from the state of Wisconsin, ended the day with nine points, as she went 3-of-5 from long range. Over the past six games, Farrow has been hot from deep, as she is shooting 65% (17-26) over the six game span.

Western had the momentum heading into halftime, as the team ended the first half on a 7-2 run, including a layup by Luke as time expired. Western had first half advantages in shooting percentage (35.9% to 35.3%) and three-point field goal percentage (40.0% to 20.0%) to help them build the one point lead heading into the locker room. However, the team struggled from the free-throw line Sunday, as they were just 7-of-17 (41.2%) from the charity stripe.

Two other players joined Luke in double-figures, as Sophie Reichelt and Maher each added 10 points and seven rebounds. Every Leatherneck who played Sunday recorded at least one rebound. Luke added three assists, and Reichelt picked up a pair of blocks in the effort.

The Leathernecks return to action on Dec. 28, as they host Eureka in nonconference action. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. inside Western Hall.