Lebanon, Ill. – The women's basketball team led in the first half of play before eventually falling against No.22 Lewis University on Thursday, February 13th in Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) action at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center in Lebanon, Illinois. 

Score: McKendree University 51, Lewis University 56 

Record: Bearcats 12-9, 8-7 GLVC | Flyers 20-2, 14-1 GLVC 

HOW IT HAPPENED

It was a gritty defensive battle to start off the first quarter, as McKendree was only able to muster up six points within on 13 attempts. Lewis's offense did not produce much either with 11 points with their leading scorer, graduate guard Taylor Gugliuzza, contributing on five of them. 

Tides would shift in the second period of play after a made three-pointer by Flyer freshman guard Yahaira Bueno as the Bearcats blazed on a 16-2 run behind sophomore forward Baylie Parks' (Lake Zurich, Ill.) six points and freshman forward Taylor Fohey's (Quincy, Ill.) eight. Lewis would cap in another shot from beyond the arc, but it would be McKendree who would lead at halftime 22-19. 

Both teams would go at it back-and-fourth in the third quarter by trading baskets with McKendree freshman forward Kyra Taylor (Davenport, Iowa) scoring the first six points for her quad and 10 total in the period. A balanced scoring effort kept Lewis on the heels of the Bearcats, but they would still be down by only one point, 36-37 at the end of the quarter. 

The Flyers would take back the lead with a made three-point shot and a lay-in to begin the final period of regulation as they found themselves up by four. The Bearcats responded with back-to-back possessions by knocking down a pair of two-pointers to tie it back up at 41 a-piece. A few minutes later, Kyra Taylor got inside once more for her team to bring her team within one. Yet, McKendree would go a bit cold down the final stretch as the Flyers held sturdy on the defensive end, not letting anything to drop except for only a couple of made threes by Parks and junior guard Chloe White (Brussels, Ill.). Lewis would win the conference matchup narrowly, 56-51. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Parks led McKendree with 18 points and 11 rebounds along with a pair of assists, three steals, and a blocked shot. 

• Kyra Taylor contributed with a dozen points to go with four rebounds and a steal. 

• Gugliuzza led the way for Lewis with 19 points on 6-11 shooting and 2-5 from three. 

• McKendree shot 34.5% from the field, 16.7% from distance, and 90.0% from the stripe while the Flyers ended with 37.0%, 29.2%, and 56.3% respectively. 

• Desptie the loss, the Bearcats were +5 in points off turnovers, +2 in bench points, and +10 in points inside the paint. 

• Lewis was +2 in second-chance points. 

UP NEXT

McKendree will be back in action on Saturday, February 15th, when they stay home to take on the University of Indianapolis at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center in Lebanon, Illinois, with tip-off set for 12:00 PM CT. 

For more updates and information on Bearcat Athletics, please continue to visit McKBearcats.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 
#BearcatsUnleashed