WAUKESHA, Wis. – The Carroll University women's basketball team took down the Illinois Wesleyan Titans by a score of 75-57 on Saturday afternoon in Van Male Field House. Emilie Wizner broke out for a season-high 18 points on an efficient 8-9 shooting. Natalie Palzkill collected a team-high eight rebounds while Kate Christian dished out five assists.
 
The Pioneers (5-4, 2-0 CCIW) shot over 59% from the floor in the win, making 32 of 54 shots. Carroll exploded in the third quarter, making 13-17 shots and finishing 6-7 at the free throw line to give them 33 points. Carroll out-rebounded the Titans 36-32 and forced 12 turnovers on seven steals. The Pio bench held a one-point advantage, as Lauren Soyke poured in eight points on 4-5 shooting. Allison Thompson tallied five of the team's six blocks, as Carroll dominated in the paint as well.
 
Wizner scored seven straight points for the Pios that started a 13-0 run for the Pioneers, giving them a 15-2 lead with 3:16 left in the first quarter. The Titans cut the lead down to six but Soyke's lay-in in the paint pushed Carroll's lead back to eight going into the second quarter. The Titans closed the gap to just a four-point Carroll advantage, but Katie Evans knocked down a triple to push Carroll back to a comfortable lead. Olivia Rangel and Soyke added two more points to Carroll's side, but the Titans knocked down a three going into the halftime break after outscoring Carroll 16-14 in the second quarter.
 
The Pios came out of the break on a tear, starting a massive 33-14 quarter that was kick-started by a second-chance three-pointer from Wizner. Carroll pushed their lead to 12 after a clean step-back jumper by Rangel, followed up by layups from Palzkill and Wizner before the media timeout. After the timeout, Carroll started an 18-4 run that lasted until the end of the quarter. Carroll forced the Titans into foul trouble, giving Brooke Foster and Kate Christian chances at the line. The Titans, down 25 going into the final quarter, cut the lead down to 15 within the first three minutes of the fourth quarter. Wizner added four quick points to help stop the Titan run. The Pioneers chose to chew the clock on their possessions and played strong defense for the final two minutes until the Titans began to empty their bench.
 
Carroll gets a week off to rest before traveling to Millikin University on Saturday, December 17 to battle the Big Blue. Carroll's last win over Millikin came in the 2019-20 season.