St. Louis, Mo. - After losing to the last team in the SLIAC standings, the Fontbonne women's basketball upset SLIAC-leading opponent Iowa Wesleyan (IW) just one week later. The Griffins defeated the Tigers 66-58 Wednesday night to go over .500 in conference play (6-5) and handed IW just their second SLIAC loss of the year.
Leading 8-7, the Griffins got into a jam after IW called a timeout and scored 10 straight points. With the first quarter coming to a close, Fontbonne junior Lauren Willis slipped to ball to Emmie Haring on the outside. Haring banked a three-pointer just as time expired, to lift the Griffins' spirits before the break.
After the Tigers opened with a bucket in the second quarter, Fontbonne scored seven unanswered points with DeAmbra Pilkinton knocking down a jumper at the elbow. IW's Darby Massner answered with the same exact shot on the other end of the court but Pilkinton answered right back on her next trip down the court. Pilkinton was fouled on the shot and tied the game on the free-throw. A tight game ensued in the final half of the quarter. Fontbonne was trailing 27-28 with 1.8 seconds left on the clock when Haring inbounded the ball off the back of an IW player and gave the Griffins the edge on a layup going into the locker room.
After freshman Jessica Jordan was called for a foul on what fans thought was a sure block, Fontbonne led by just three points with 3:45 left in the third quarter. The Griffins, ended on a 6-2 run, winning 50-43.
Fontbonne earned a 10-point lead after Pilkinton scored six of the Griffin's eight points to open the final frame. Fontbonne led 62-54 with 1:25 to play but IW scored two buckets in a row to cut the lead to four with 44 seconds remaining. Time would run out as a costly IW turnover, forced by Haring and Jordan, would elminate IW's chances of a win.
Pilkinton led the Griffins with 22 points while Haring recorded 12 points, a season-high 10 assists, seven rebounds and four steals. Erika Kuhn totaled 10 points with six rebounds while Kaitlynn Walker received extended playing time off the bench with Olivia Hollander and getting into some foul trouble.
The Griffins managed to hold Rachel Williams to just eight points, of which six came from free-throws. The senior typically averages 17.5 PPG. Dakota Flesner recorded the game's only double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds.
Fontbonne is on the road at Spalding this weekend and again next Wednesday at Westminster. The Griffins return home on Saturday, Feb. 6th to host the Big Bend Showdown with Webster.