Nayeli Nidez Acuña and Sarina Dacio share smiles on the bench
Aidan McMurtrie
Nayeli Nidez Acuña (left) and Sarina Dacio are all smiles late in the game following their performances against Monmouth.
53
Monmouth (IL) MC 5-15,2-9 Midwest Conference
81
Winner Knox KC 12-7,7-3 Midwest Conference
Monmouth (IL) MC
5-15,2-9 Midwest Conference
53
Final
81
Knox KC
12-7,7-3 Midwest Conference
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Monmouth (IL) MC 12 14 10 17 53
Knox KC 19 16 30 16 81

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Women Roll Past Monmouth, 81-53

Dacio hit her 200th career 3-pointer and Nidez Acuña posted her fourth double-double

GALESBURG, Ill. — Fifth-year Sarina Dacio poured in 20 points and first-year Nayeli Nidez Acuña provided a 16-point, 12-rebound double-double to lead the Knox College women's basketball team to an 81-53 rout over local rival Monmouth College in front of a basketball homecoming crowd at Memorial Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon. The Prairie Fire improve to 12-7 on the season and 7-3 in the Midwest Conference, while the visiting Fighting Scots dropped to 5-15 overall and 2-9 in the league.

Although Monmouth took the lead at the outset of the game, Knox opened up its first double-digit lead before seven minutes had elapsed at 17-7. The Scots did fight back, scoring the next five points before sophomore Bria Medina converted two free throws to make it a 19-12 game at the end of the first period.

The back-and-forth continued throughout the second quarter. Junior Kylee Callahan drained a 3-pointer for a 12-point advantage, 26-14, and the two sides traded baskets for a bit before Monmouth closed to within six on a Brooklyn Sellers layup with 1:34 to play in the half. Again Medina responded for the Prairie Fire, scoring three the hard way for a 35-26 edge at the break.

Knox quickly put the game away in the third quarter, opening the stanza on a 14-0 run with Nidez Acuña providing nine of those points and Dacio the other five. And when the Prairie Fire closed the quarter on a 10-1 spurt, capped by a triple from sophomore Leah Schoonover, they held an insurmountable 29-point bulge, 65-36.

The difference grew to as many as 32 in the latter half of the fourth quarter and never fell below 26 as Knox cruised to the victory.

  • Among Dacio's 20 points were two 3-pointers, giving her 200 long balls in her career, the first to ever reach that mark for the women's team.
  • The double-double was the fourth of the season for Nidez Acuña, and the 12 rebounds match a personal best, while she also blocked a season-high four shots.
  • Medina added 13 points, her 16th straight game in double figures and 18th time in 19 contests this season.
  • Ashley Jones led all players with a game-high 21 points.
  • The Knox defense held the Fighting Scots without a 3-pointer (0-for-9), the first opponent without one in a game in almost eight years (Beloit, Feb. 11, 2017, also 0-for-9).

The Prairie Fire has a big game on the road next at Lawrence University (15-5, 9-2 MWC), which is just ahead of Knox in the conference standings in second place and lost in Galesburg back in December, 74-58. Tip-off at Alexander Gymnasium on Wednesday, Feb. 5 will be at 5:30 p.m. with a live stream and stats available through PrairieFire.Knox.edu, the official website of Knox College athletics.

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