Beloit, WI – The Prairie Fire swept the season series against Beloit College with a 108-103 Midwest Conference victory on Saturday.

The 108 points scored is a season-high and the second-most in Knox women’s basketball history.  The Prairie Fire set the single-game record against Beloit last season in a 114-102 victory on January 21, 2012 at Memorial Gym.

Knox established another new record against the Buccaneers in this game.  The Prairie Fire attempted 52 free throws, topping the previous all-time mark of 49 attempts in last year’s home game against Beloit.  Knox made 35 of the 52 foul shots attempted on Saturday, three short of the record of 38 that was also set in the 114-102 win over the Buccaneers.

Knox (8-13, 6-10 MWC) led 100-90 with 4:33 remaining in the game but had to hold on after Beloit (4-17, 3-13 MWC) scored 12 of the next 17 points cut the deficit to three at 105-102 with 1:09 left to play.

A free throw by Prairie Fire senior Kristin McDonald (Chicago, IL, Regina Dominican) made it a two possession game at 106-102 with 25 seconds on the clock.  Beloit again trimmed the Knox lead to three at 106-103 after splitting two foul shots with 15 seconds to go.

The Buccaneers fouled Jodi Marver (Northbrook, IL, Glenbrook North) on the Prairie Fire’s next possession.  She sank two free throws to account for the game’s final points.

The win snapped a three-game skid by the Prairie Fire and ended Beloit’s two-game winning streak.

The teams were tied at 8-8 at the 17:12 mark of the first half when Knox went on a 9-0 run that junior Grace Theisen (Minneapolis, MN, Southwest) started with a layup and senior Sara Johnson (Grinnell, Iowa, Grinnell) capped off with two free throws for an 18-9 lead with 15:06 in the first half.

Beloit answered with a 16-8 spurt to pull within a point of the Fire at 26-25 10:53 before the break.

Knox followed with a 10-0 run over the next two minutes, including a 3-pointer by sophomore Jessica Howard (Galesburg, IL, Galesburg), for the first double-figure lead of the game at 36-25.

The Buccaneers trimmed the Prairie Fire advantage to 36-31 at the 6:40 mark. 

The rest of the first half belonged to Knox.

Sophomore Katie White (Peoria, IL, Notre Dame) buried a 3-pointer on the Prairie Fire’s next possession for a 39-31 lead.  Marver scored the next five points for Knox on two free throws and a 3-pointer.  Beloit limited some of the damage with a layup in between Marver’s flurry of points and trailed 44-33.

Knox took its biggest lead of the half at 51-36 on a 3-point basket by McDonald with 3:16 to go in the opening stanza.  The Buccaneers took a point off of the deficit by outscoring the Prairie Fire 10-9 the rest of the half as Knox held a 60-46 advantage at the intermission.

The Prairie Fire connected on 21-of-42 shots (50%) in the first half, including 5-of-16 (31%) from 3-point range.  Knox struggled a bit from the foul line; making 13-of-23 attempts (56.5%).

Beloit shot exceptionally well, going 16-of-28 (57%) from the field and 14-of-18 (78%) from the free throw line.  The Prairie Fire, however, forced the Bucs into 26 first half turnovers that resulted in 32 points for Knox.

The Prairie Fire lead grew to 63-46 when sophomore Brittney Price (Wyoming, IL, Stark County) opened the second half by draining a 3-point basket.  Beloit wasn’t deterred and scored 10 straight points over the next three minutes and trailed by just seven, 63-56.

Knox boosted the lead to 83-70 following two free throws by first-year Alycia Webster (Allen Park, MI, Melvindale) with 10:27 to play.  After Beloit’s Kandace Fox converted a three-point play on the next possession to get her team within 10 at 83-73, Howard responded by netting a 3-pointer for an 86-73 advantage with a little more than 10:00 in the contest.

Beloit spent the next five minutes trying to whittle the deficit down while the Prairie Fire kept the Buccaneers at bay by cashing in at the foul line.

Knox cooled off to 33% shooting in the second half but hit 22-of-29 (76%) free throws.  The Fire finished the game connecting on 32-of-75 (42%) shots – nine of the buckets from 3-point range.

Beloit shot 51% in the second half and 38-of-71 (53.5%) overall.  The hosts made 26-of-38 (68%) free throws and held a 54-39 rebounding edge.  Turnovers, however, were costly as the Bucs wound up with 36 that resulted in 43 points for Knox.

Marver was one of six Prairie Fire players to score in double-figures.  She led the way with 21 points, 14 of them from the free throw line, and nine rebounds.  Webster added 16 points, McDonald and White 12 apiece, Howard 11, and Johnson 10 points.

Fox scored a game-high 24 points for Beloit.

Knox took both games against Beloit this season.  The Prairie Fire defeated the Buccaneers 100-90 in the first meeting between the teams on December 8 at Memorial Gym.

Next up for Knox is the home finale against Illinois College on Tuesday night.  The game is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 after the men’s game between the Prairie Fire and the Blueboys.

Illinois College (6-15, 4-12 MWC) has lost four straight games and is 1-9 on the road this season after falling 54-42 at Ripon College on Saturday.  The Prairie Fire can sweep the Lady Blues with a win after beating IC 92-87 on January 9 in Jacksonville.

Tuesday is also Senior and Parents Day.  Seniors Kristin McDonald and Sara Johnson, along with their parents, will be recognized prior to the game.  The contest will be streamed live at http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/knox.portal#

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