Wheaton, Ill. – The Wheaton Thunder women's basketball team earned a 60-47 victory at home on Tuesday night against Clarke University (Iowa). Wheaton is now 5-1 on the season as the Thunder heads to California for a two-game trip at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Pomona-Pitzer.
Wheaton never trailed in the game against Clarke tonight as the Thunder jumped out to an 11-5 lead in the first 6:30 of the game. Clarke responded with a 7-2 run to trim Wheaton's lead to 13-12 with 9:10 left in the first half; however Wheaton responded with its own run in a Thunder surge of 9-3 that increased the hosts' lead to 22-15 with 2:45 left before halftime. The Thunder held a 24-19 advantage at halftime.
Wheaton held a 10-point lead at 34-24 with 15:20 remaining in the game when the Crusaders responded with 10-unanswered points to tie the game at 34-34 with 12:15 left. The score was tied at 38-38 with 9:00 left in regulation when the Thunder put together a 13-2 run that gave Wheaton a 51-40 lead with 4:59 left in the game. Freshman Ellie Zeller scored three field goals in the run, Lauren Graham netted a pair of baskets and Breanna Bohlen capped the Wheaton run with a three-pointer with 4:59 left in the game. Wheaton maintained its solid lead to earn the win.
Graham led the Thunder with 18 points as she shot 9-for-10 from the field. Reeves scored 12 points, with six rebounds. Senior guard Brooke Olson scored eight points, with nine rebounds and six assists. Breanna Bohlen recorded eight points, with a pair of three-pointers.
Wheaton shot 44.6% (25-56) from the field, with 21.4% (3-14) from behind the three-point arc and 70% (7-10) at the free throw line. Clarke shot a 39.5% (17-43) field goal percentage, with 29.4% (5-17) from three-point range and 80% (8-10) at the charity stripe. Wheaton out-rebounded the Crusaders 38-20, with a 16-3 edge on the offensive glass. Wheaton's dominance on the offensive boards allowed the Thunder to out-score Clarke 17-1 in second-chance points.
Anna Hahn led Clarke with 17 points, five rebounds and three steals. Amanda Hamilton scored nine points and Breland Prochaska recorded eight points.