LEBANON, Ill. – McKendree University women's basketball gained their second Great Lakes Valley Conference win of the year, defeating Rockhurst 72-62 here Thursday night at the Melvin Price Convocation Center.

With the win, McKendree improves to 4-4 overall and 2-1 in the GLVC, while Rockhurst falls to 3-5 overall and 0-2 in the GLVC. With Thursday's win, the Bearcats bettered last season's win total as they won just three games in 2021-22 and have already won four of their first eight games in 2022-23. 
 
Rockhurst only held the lead by two points at the start of the game before McKendree went on a 20-3 run in the first quarter to hold their largest lead, 20-5. By the end of the first half, McKendree led by seven with a score of 36-29.

The second half came down to a battle of free throws as the Bearcats would shoot 21 shots from the foul stripe and would wink 17 of them while Rockhurst only gained seven free throw opportunities in the half. Although the Hawks would come back within six twice in the fourth quarter, the Bearcats prevailed with a 72-62 win.
 
"We came out really aggressive on both sides of the floor and that was the emphasis – controlling tempo. We had a really fast tempo in the first quarter which led us to some easy buckets," said McKendree head coach Kari Kerkhoff following the game. "Rockhurst is known for shooting threes, and we did a good job defending that today."
 
Leading the Bearcats offensively was sophomore guard Clare Breden (Jerseyville, Ill./Jerseyville) with 14 points, 12 of which were scored in the second half. This game marked Breden's third consecutive double-digit scoring performance. Breden was 5-for-14 from the field and a perfect 3-for-3 from the free throw line while also dishing out three assists.
 
Coach Kerkhoff said of Breden, "I am proud of Clare because she wasn't hitting shots in the first half, but got to the free throw line and found her rhythm in the second half. That was crucial for us."
 
Three more Bearcats scored in double figures as junior guard Erin Golden (Batavia, Ill./Batavia), junior guard Christy Fortune (Appleton, Wis./Appleton West), and junior guard Maclayne Taylor (Odgen, Ill./Lincoln Land CC) all tallied 10 points each. Fortune shot 4-for-9 from the field while Golden was 8-for-8 and Taylor was 8-for-10 from the free throw line. Just shy of double-digits was freshman guard Georgia Duncan, recording nine points (4-for-5) in the win.
 
Junior forward Naomi McDaniel (Attica, Ind./Parkland CC) led McKendree on the boards with nine while Taylor and Golden each added six rebounds in the victory. McDaniel netted eight points for the Bearcats.
 
McKendree recorded 21 points off the bench including the 10 points from Golden, six points from redshirt freshman Maci Meyer (Hubertus, Wis./Hartford) who was 2-for-3 from three, and five points from junior forward Kristyn Mitchell (Collinsville, Ill./Illinois Central College).
 
As a team, the Bearcats outshot the Hawks in all three scoring categories as McKendree shot 41 percent from the field (21-for-51), 50 percent from three (6-for-12), and 82 percent from the free throw line (24-for-29). The Hawks were 31 percent in field goals (24-for-76), 16 percent from three (4-for-25), and 71 percent from the free throw line (10-for-14).
 
Rockhurst was led by Keegan Sullivan, who tallied a double-double for the contest (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Macie Conway with 13 points.
 
McKendree is back in action this coming Saturday, Dec. 3 as they host Southwest Baptist for a 1 p.m. "Battle of the Bearcats" game.