Box Score (Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, Dec. 19) – The McKendree University women's basketball team defeated the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez 76-47 Thursday to go 2-0 during its time in Puerto Rico. The Bearcats improve to 7-2 overall on the season.
McKendree was slow to begin the game finding itself down by five to Mayaguez at its lowest deficit in the first quarter. The Bearcats rebounded and regained the momentum in the second quarter, scoring 24 points to take a 41-22 lead heading into halftime. McKendree outscored Mayaguez in both the third and fourth quarters to maintain the lead and collect a 76-47 victory.
Ten Bearcats registered points for McKendree in the win over Mayaguez with senior guard
Jordan Heberg (Romeoville, IL/Plainfield North) leading the pack with 11 points. Senior forward
Megan Jensen (Union, MO/Saint Francis Borgia Regional) was the only other Bearcat to record double-digit points in the game with 10. Both junior guard
Madison Jones (Abingdon, IL/Abiingdon-Avon) and senior forward
Brianna Johnson (Lodi, WI/Beaver Dam) were crucial in the offensive efforts for McKendree, each with nine points.
Callie Pohlman (Appleton, WI/Appleton North) (8),
Madison Hart (Oak Creek, WI/Oak Creek) (8),
Kaelyn Froebe (Lincoln, IL/Lincoln) (8),
Jenna Krause (Seymour, WI/Seymour) (6),
Shayli Florine (Galesburg, IL/Galesburg) (5), and
Madison Parker (O'Fallon, MO/O'Fallon Christian) (2) were the other Bearcats to post points in the game.
Senior forward
Madison Hart (Oak Creek, WI/Oak Creek) was the lone Bearcat to tally double-digit rebounds in the game with 14, just two below her personal season best. Jensen and Jones were also essential defensive players for McKendree, Jensen collecting seven rebounds and Jones earning six.
As a team, the Bearcats earned more points from turnovers and on second chance points than Mayaguez. McKendree's bench also had a big impact on the game as it tallied 33 points compared to just 19 from Mayaguez's bench.
The Bearcats will return to action in Lebanon on Jan. 2 with a Great Lakes Valley Conference matchup against Southwest Baptist University. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
