GALESBURG, Illinois - The Prairie Fire women's basketball team defeated Fontbonne 77-63 on Tuesday night.

Knox raced to a 13-0 lead early in the first quarter thanks to five early points from Jessica Lee. The Griffins rallied to within five points, but the Prairie Fire quickly regained a double-digit lead. Knox led 30-12 heading into the second quarter.

The Prairie Fire expanded their lead to 24 early in the second period. Fontbonne chipped away at the the lead late in the quarter to send the game into halftime with Knox still up 44-28.

The Prairie Fire built up another 20 point lead early in the second half and led 62-42 at the end of the third quarter.

Knox kept their 20 point lead until late in the game. The Griffins made a jumper with 1:27 to play to bring the score to within 12, but the Prairie Fire knocked down a jumper and three free throws to nail down the victory.

Sarina Dacio led Knox with 13 points on 5-of-11 shooting. Lee added 12 points and eight rebounds, narrowly missing the double-double. Saxon Alvarez hit of 5-of-7 shots for 11 points and Catessa Duran just missed a double-double with nine points and 10 boards. Duran also added six steals.

"Great team win tonight. Our young women came off a hard week of finals and took in all the information on the Fontbonne Scout and executed the game plan perfectly," said head coach Kira Mowen. "Fontbonne had some great runs and we withstood their runs and worked hard defensively. Our offensive execution was much better tonight and we shared the ball nicely. We are looking forward to some days off and sharing time with family and friends."

The Prairie Fire return to action as they host Principia on November 27.