Northwestern University Athletics
Lady Lions Outlast Northwestern, 72-53
1/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 10, 2008
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Northwestern fought hard, but Penn State held strong on its home court, downing the Wildcats 72-53 Thursday evening at the Bryce Jordan Center. Junior Ellen Jaeschke turned in another strong performance for the Wildcats with 18 points. She has scored in double-figures in three out of the last five games.
"Even though it may not show in the boxscore, some things happened for us tonight that we were very proud of," head coach Beth Combs said. "We saw some bright spots out there tonight, including Ellen Jaeschke who has been consistent for us throughout the conference season."
The Lady Lions jumped out to a 23-12 lead midway through the first half but Northwestern went on a 10-4 run to pull within five with 4:29 remaining. Jaeschke (Cary, Ill./Cary-Grove/Air Force) fueled the spurt with four of her team-leading 12 first-half points. The junior was 6-for-9 from the field and grabbed three boards during the half. Penn State outscored Northwestern 5-2 to close the frame and set the halftime score at 32-24 in favor of the home team.
Penn State opened the second half on an 8-2 run to push the tally to 40-26 with 17:55 remaining.
Sara Stutz (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) cut the Lady Lion lead to 10, 42-32, with 15:23 left. The difference fluctuated between 10 and 12 points over the next two minutes until two free throws by Stutz cut the PSU lead to eight with 13:31 left.
That was as close as the Wildcats would get, as PSU limited Northwestern's shot opportunities and capitalized on its turnovers en route to the victory.
Jaeschke added a team-high seven rebounds while Nadia Bibbs (Chicago, Ill./Hillcrest) led NU with six assists.
Northwestern falls to 4-12, 0-4 on the season.
The Wildcats are next in action on Sunday, Jan. 13 when they host the Ohio State Buckeyes. Tip is slated for 2 p.m.
