BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -  Junior Michelle Bilek nailed a 3-pointer from the left wing with 2.8 seconds left to give the Illinois Wesleyan women's basketball team a 70-69 win over Carthage at the Shirk Center on Saturday (Jan. 14).

The Titans have won eight straight games and improved to 11-4 overall and are in first place in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin with a 4-0 mark while the Lady Reds had a six-game winning streak snapped and fell to 12-3 overall and 3-1 against the league.

Senior Olivia Lett led IWU with 21 points while Bilek had her career-high with 12 and sophomore Colleen McMahon also scored 12.

There were five lead changes in the contest, which was tied six times. In the first half with the game tied at 21-21 with 7:35 to play, the Titans went on an 17-6 run to make the halftime edge 38-27. But the Lady Reds rallied from a 14-point deficit (IWU led 46-32 with 17:33 remaining) to tie the game at 53-53 with 9:48 remaining on a 3-ponter by Haley Stercic.

Carthage then went on a 16-7 run to grab a 69-60 lead with 2:50 remaining in the game. But IWU scored the final 10 points, coming on a Bilek 3-pointer with 2:33 left, a basket by senior Brittany Hasselbring with 2:22 left following a turnover, two free throws by Lett with 1:41 to go and the deciding trey by Bilek.

The Titans shot .431 from the field in the game (25 of 58) and made seven of 28 (.250) 3-point field goal tries after going three-for-15 in the first half. IWU made 13 of 17 from the free throw line (.765).

Carthage shot .490 (25 of 51) from the field and made six of 19 (.318) from beyond the 3-point arc. The Lady Reds, who got 23 points from Cailee Corcoran and 17 from Diana Jacklin, were also 13 of 17 in free throws (.765).

The Lady Reds won the battle of the boards, 36-30, led by 15 from Jacklin, Lett had nine rebounds to lead IWU. Carthage committed 20 turnovers to 14 for Wesleyan.

The Titans will play next on Wednesday (Jan. 18) at North Central at 7:30 p.m.