TOPEKA, Kan. – Washburn hit several key free throws down the stretch and overcame an early deficit with a strong final three quarters to defeat Lindenwood, 81-74, at home on Saturday, Jan. 2.
 
The Ichabods struggled early, trailing by four (16-12) at the first quarter break, but woke up midway thru the second to come back strong and tie it, 26-all at half. LWU opened up a nine-point lead (23-14) with 6:44 to go in the second quarter before a jumper from Erin Dohnalek started Washburn on a 12-3 run to end the half as the Ichabods held the Lady Lions to just one field goal over that span. 
 
Julie Ravn, who had five points at halftime, gave the Ichabods a spark in the opening two minutes of the third quarter, scoring seven straight for the Ichabods as part of a 7-3 run that gave WU the lead for good with 8:04 to go in the third, up 33-29.  Later in the quarter, up one (41-40) with 2:34 on the clock, the Ichabods went on a 9-0 run to grow its lead into double-digits when Alyxis Bowens started the fourth quarter scoring with a layup, up 50-40.
 
Lindenwood pushed hard over the next seven minutes and soon cut the lead to one, 64-63, off a three-pointer with 2:08 to play.  Clutch free throw shooting paid off down the stretch as the Ichabods hit 14 from the charity stripe over the final two minutes to seal the first win of 2016.
 
Alyxis Bowens hit 9-of-11 from the field and 10 free throws to finish with a career-best 28 points, grabbing eight rebounds to just miss a double-double.  Ravn finished 4-of-7 on three-pointers on her way to 20 points (with three assists and two steals), recording a career-high as well.  Dohnalek was third on the team with nine points.
 
Jayna Smith just missed a double-double as well, pulling down a team-high (and career-high) 15 rebounds to go with seven points.  Haley Pfau led the team with four assists while Smith and Ravn had three assists. 
 
Washburn hit 27 free throws on the night, as the teams combined for 44 total free throws (on 68 total chances).  Overall, Lindenwood was whistled for 31 fouls and had two plays foul out, while Washburn had 20 personal fouls and three Ichabods fouled out.
 
As a team, WU shot just 30.8 percent from the field in the first quarter but picked it up down the stretch, finishing 46.3 percent from the field for the game (including a 8-for-13, 61.5 percent effort in the fourth).

The Ichabods were once again dominant on the boards, nearly doubling the Lady Lions' rebounding total with a plus-19 advantage (43 to 24).
 
The Ichabods take on Lincoln in an MIAA matchup this Monday, Jan. 4 at 5:30 p.m., from Lee Arena before heading on the road for two more games next week.