(LEBANON, Ill., – Feb. 24) – The McKendree University women's basketball team improved to 17-10 on the season with a 69-59 win over Brescia University behind a season-high 26 points from sophomore guard Ashley Agee (Moberly, Mo./Moberly). Brescia University fell to 8-21 overall with the loss.

Agee (Moberly, Mo./Moberly) led all players with her 26 points and junior guard Haley Klingelhoefer (Mascoutah, Ill./Mascoutah) (Mascoutah, Ill./Mascoutah) recorded a double-double with 14 points and a career-high 10 rebounds. Senior Emily Best (Wood River, Ill./East Alton-Wood River) (Wood River, Ill./East Alton-Wood River) also had 12 points.  Kelsey Park (Wildwood, Mo./Lafayette) also had five steals on the night to give her 109 this season. She is seven steals away from tying McKendree single-season mark of 116 by Niamh Dwyer in 2001-02. Christal Floyd led Brescia with 25 points and Clarissa Houston had 12 points on four three-pointers.

McKendree outscored Brescia 14-3 in the first six minutes of the game, but Brescia cut the deficit to four, 19-15, points on back to back three pointers by Houston with nine minutes to play in the first half. The Bearcats lead remained in single digits for the next six minutes, only for McKendree to outscore Brescia 14-5 in the remainder of the first half to lead 39-26 at half.

McKendree led 49-30 with 13:30 left in the second half after a layup by Agee, but would see their double-digit lead dwindle to 61-51 with 3:40 remaining in the game. Two layups by Floyd and two free throws from Brittany Bird cut the score to 63-57 with less than a minute to play, but McKendree made their free throws down the stretch to secure the 69-59 win.

McKendree made 18 of 19 free throw attempts on the night and also shot 41.4 percent from the field.  The Bearcats will travel to Stephens College Thursday night for an American Midwest Conference game at 7 p.m.

-McK-