TOPEKA, Kan. – Three Ichabods scored in double-digits and Washburn had a 14-rebound advantage in a 68-55 home win over Southwest Baptist on Saturday, Dec. 12.
Washburn (6-3, 2-1 MIAA) took a 17-point lead into the half after an 8-0 run late in the second quarter and never looked back, not allowing the Bearcats within single digits the rest of the way. WU shot 38.7 percent from the field while SBU finished the night 22-of-60 (36.7 percent) on field goals.
Alyxis Bowens scored 19 points (including a 7-of-8 effort on free throws) to lead the Ichabods while
Erika Lane shot 80 percent (4-of-5) from the field to finish with 13.
Erin Dohnalek tallied 10 points on the night as she and Lane both went 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. Lane added four rebounds and four assists and Bowens grabbed eight boards, second on the team in rebounding behind
Jayna Smith, who pulled down 12 rebounds for her second straight double-digit rebounding effort. Bowens was just one shy of her career high of 20 points.
Tied at nine after a pair of Bearcat free throws at the first media timeout of the day (4:39), Lane hit a layup just 20 seconds later to open a quick burst of four answered for Washburn (after a jumper from Dohnalek) that WU the lead for good. A pair of free throws from Bowens with 1:50 to go in the first sent the Ichabods to the first quarter break up three, 15-12.
With 5:29 to go in the second,
Cindy Demosthene used a Dohnalek assist for a layup to open a stretch of five unanswered for the Ichabods, and though SBU stopped the run at the 4:52 mark (with Washburn ahead, 26-18), Dohnalek's jumper with 4:33 to go in the first half sent WU towards an 8-0 run. All told, Washburn outscored SBU 13-2 over a nearly five-minute span that allowed the Ichabods to open up a 34-18 advantage inside the two-minute mark before half.
Leading 37-20 at half, Washburn saw SBU cut the lead to 13 (40-27) with 7:34 on the clock in the third, but
Julie Ravn's layup just seconds later started another 6-0 rally for WU kept the Bearcats at bay. SBU brought the deficit to 12 twice more in the third, but Washburn continued to find an answer that limited the Bearcats comeback ability.
WU's largest lead of the night (20) came with 3:54 to go in the game as Ravn hit her first three-pointer of the game to make it 67-47, and though SBU charged hard down the stretch by outscored the Ichabods 8-1 over the final two minutes, the early advantage paid off for Washburn in its second conference win of the year.
The Ichabods are on the road next week for two conference games, traveling to Pittsburg State on Wednesday, Dec. 16 and Missouri Southern on Saturday, Dec. 19 to close out the 2015 portion of its regular season.
