GALESBURG, Ill. — The Knox College women's basketball team took the challenge right to visiting second-ranked Wartburg College on Wednesday evening at Memorial Gymnasium, building up a lead as large as nine points late in the first half. But the Knights (3-0) showed why they are so highly regarded, storming back in the third quarter and securing an 80-64 victory over the Prairie Fire (1-2).

The first quarter featured four lead changes and three ties and was a one-possession game for the entire 10 minutes save when first-year Nayeli Nidez Acuña drove the lane for a layup and a 6-2 Knox lead. But the second quarter really fired up the crowd on hand as the Prairie Fire caught fire and went on a 15-3 run in a four-minute span to take a 30-21 lead with only two minutes before the end of the half. Six different Knox players scored during the surge that was ignited by one of junior Kylee Callahan's three 3-pointers on the evening.

But Wartburg provided a harbinger of what was to come by scoring the final six points of the first half to close the gap to three at the break. Callahan opened the half with a pull-up jumper, but the Knights rattled off 10 straight points to take a five-point lead. Fifth-year Sarina Dacio, who led Knox with 15 points, ended the run with a bucket, and 3-pointers by fifth-year Haylee Carpenter and Callahan kept the deficit at three, 45-42. Wartburg then ran off another long run, this time 11 points, before Dacio ended it right before the quarter expired with the Knights up, 56-44.

The Prairie Fire twice were able to get back within single digits on a Dacio triple and a fast break layup by Callahan, but back-to-back Wartburg 3-pointers with less than five minutes to play dashed any hopes of a big comeback.

• Thanks to Wartburg's size advantage, the Knights dominated the boards, grabbing more than twice as many rebounds (56-27), while they also enjoyed a huge advantage at the foul line, making 22-of-31 (.71) compared to just 5-of-8 (.625) for Knox.
• Joining Dacio in double figures were Callahan with 14 points and Nidez Acuña with 10 before she fouled out.
• Both teams struggled to find the range from long distance, with Knox hitting 7-of-26 (.269) and Wartburg only 6-of-27 (.222).
• This was the first meeting between the two teams since the Knights came to Galesburg 17 years ago and left with a victory double the difference of this game (83-51).

Knox will take a few days off for fall final exams before returning to the court on Nov. 19 at Eureka College (1-0) for a game that tips off at 7:30 p.m. Live video and stats will available through PrairieFire.Knox.edu, the official website of Knox College athletics.