Box Score

A pair of scoring runs was enough to put Cornell College over the top against the Prairie Fire in the season opener for both teams Monday night at Memorial Gymnasium.

The Rams erased a seven point Fire lead over the final 5:30 of the first half with an 11-3 run, and then scored 12 straight points during a four minute stretch early in the second half to claim a 73-54 victory.

The Fire looked strong early, taking a 13-7 lead just over five minutes into the game when first-year guard Chantal Heckman (Chicago, Illinois) connected on a three-point shot.  The hosts took their biggest lead of the game at 27-20 with 3:58 to play in the first half.

Cornell responded, tying the game at 29-29 on a basket by Morgan Woods with 58 seconds to go.  After senior Jenny Haskell (Murphys, California) split a pair of free throws to give Knox the one point lead, Valerie Berner knocked down two free throws with six seconds left in the first half that gave the Rams a 31-30 lead at the break.

The teams went back-and-forth for the first four minutes of the second half.  The Prairie Fire got the lead back three times before Cornell put together a 12-0 run that would ultimately seal the win. 

The Fire scored seven of the first 12 points of the second half and led 37-36 when Haskell drained a three-point basket at the 17:51 mark of the game.  That was the last lead the Fire would hold as the Rams scored 12 straight over a 4:15 second span for a 48-37 advantage with 13:01 to play.  The Prairie Fire would get no closer than seven points at 59-52 when junior Kelly Ricketts (Galesburg, Illinois) made a jump shot at the 4:19 mark.

Cornell outscored the Prairie Fire 42-24 in the second half, when the Rams shot a red hot 59 percent and finished at 51 percent overall.  The Prairie Fire, after a 47 percent shooting effort in the first half, cooled off to 22 percent in the second half and 31 percent for the game.  Knox was just 3-of-16 from three-point range and shot under 60 percent at the foul line, 17-of 29 (58.6 percent).

Ricketts led the Fire with 18 points on 8-of-9 shooting and a pair of free throws.  She also had three steals.  Haskell recorded the first double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Cornell also had two players who reached double figure scoring.  Camille Marie-Lidd shot 9-of-10 from the floor and finished with a game-high 22 points.  She also contributed seven rebounds and three blocks.  Kathryn Schilling scored 12 of her 18 points in the second half and added four steals.

The Prairie Fire tries again for a win when Eureka College visits Memorial Gymnasium Thursday at 5:30 p.m.