Jakob Milani
Staff Writer
jmilani@murraystate.edu
In their first game since Dec. 19, the Murray State Racers took home their first conference win of the season by a score of 76-68 against the Eastern Illinois Panthers.
Eastern Illinois got out to a 11-4 lead with 7:15 left in the first quarter, led by junior forward Abby Wahl, who made her first four shot attempts. Murray State struggled to defend the close shot, allowing 18 points in the paint by the Panthers.
Murray State shot well from the field in the quarter, making nine of its 14 attempts from the field and all three of their three-point-shots. Despite this and a buzzer-beating layup from freshman guard Bria Sanders-Woods, EIU held a 25-23 lead going into the second quarter.
The second quarter was slow, as neither team was able to find the basket. Eastern Illinois went on a 5-minute 16-second field goal drought, starting with 9:31 left in the quarter. The Panthers shot 5-15 from the field in the quarter, and 2-6 from three point range.
Murray State also had a near eight-minute field-goal drought, to close out the second quarter. The Racers shot 3-13 from the field, but shot 4-4 from the free throw line, all of which came within the time of the field-goal drought. This allowed the Panthers to head into the locker room leading the Racers 40-34.
The Panthers were led at the half by Wahl, who had 10 points on 5-7 shooting and two steals in the half. Freshman forward Morgan Litwiller had nine points in the half, as well as two blocks and two rebounds.
The Racers came out of the half strong, making three of their first five shot attempts to take a 41-40 lead early in the third quarter. The Racers also outrebounded the Panthers 11-5 in the third quarter.
Eastern Illinois shot 5-13 from the field in the third quarter, scoring just 11 points. The Racers scored 20 points in the quarter, shooting 9-17 from the field. Murray State managed to hold its lead and ended the quarter up 54-51.
Eastern Illinois kept the game close throughout the fourth quarter, coming to within two points with just 31 seconds left in the game. However, the Racers pulled away after making all six of their last free throw attempts.
The Racers shot 4-8 from the field in the fourth quarter, while the Panthers shot just 5-14. Murray State was 14-15 from the free throw line in the quarter, including 6-6 in the last 30 seconds of the game. The Racers took the victory by a score of 76-68.
Murray State finished with four players in double digit points. Junior Guard Macey Turley scored 22 points, shooting 4-6 from three point range and 8-8 from the free throw line. She also had six rebounds and an assist. Sanders-Woods scored 19 points on 6-11 shooting, and was 7-7 from the free throw line. She also grabbed five rebounds, three assists and a steal.
Other Racers to finish in double digits were freshman forward Katelyn Young, who finished with 14 points on 6-8 shooting, and senior forward Laci Hawthorne, who finished with 13 points on 5-8 shooting. Young grabbed seven rebounds and two steals while Hawthorne grabbed six rebounds and two steals.
Eastern Illinois had three players in double digits. Wahl finished with 20 points on 8-10 shooting. She also had four rebounds and two steals. Litwiller finished with 11 points, three rebounds and two blocks. Sophomore guard Lariah Washington had 12 points, as well as 10 rebounds and an assist.
Eastern Illinois loses its third conference game, dropping to 3-6 on the season, and 1-3 in the conference.
Murray State picks up its first conference win of the year and improves to 4-3 on the season, and 1-1 in the conference. The Racers will travel to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville for their game on Saturday, Jan. 9. The game is set to begin at 1 p.m.