The CCIW split a pair at the Hope tournament. Millikin crushed Alma in the opener, 94-67, behind a 28-point performance from Elyce Knudsen in which she also registered a sparkling 6:0 ratio and swatted five blocks. Other Big Blue players who made an impact were Bailey Coffman (14 and 9), Sophie Darden (12 and 10), and Christina Rice (10). However, Hope turned the tables on the CCIW in the nightcap by thumping Augustana to the tune of 83-64. Augie was led by Macy Beinborn, who scored 16, and by really nice all-around games from Cali Papez (11 and 10) and Cadence Tatum (11 and 8, with an outstanding 9:2 ratio).

Elsewhere, Carthage smoked Edgewood, 85-48, up in Mad City. The Firebirds were paced by Lauren Knight, who had 16. She was joined in double figures by Addison Ebeling (13 and 10), reigning CCIW POW Marianna Morrissey (12 and a 5:2 ratio), and Grace Wamser (11). In addition to Morrissey, Emma Thistle and Margueret Spear also had great floor games (5:1 and 4:0, respectively), as the Firebirds dished out 25 dimes while only turning over the ball ten times. Carthage shooters certainly found the Edgedome to their liking, as the team logged a .500/.379/.889 shooting line as a whole.

Roanoke 61
North Park 57

Victoria Perry: 24 pts, 3 stls
Caroline Long: 14 rebs
Kathryn Keehn: 8 rebs

The Vikings played a solid game tonight against a fairly decent Maroons squad. They ran their offense well, took better care of the ball, and shot better. The problem was really one of size; Roanoke's superior size made it difficult for the Vikings to score around the rim, and the rebounding, which went in NPU's favor last night, flip-flopped heavily in favor of their opponent.

Carroll smushed St. Norbert at Van Male, 86-49, behind .544 shooting from the field and a gargantuan 48-26 rebounding advantage. Olivia Rangel had 21 and 8, Natalie Gricius had 19 and 7, and Emilie Wizner added 11 and a nice floor game of 4:0. Allison Thompson had eight boards, while Chloe Halvorson grabbed seven rebounds and dished out six assists without a turnover.

Augustana won the consolation game at the tournament in Holland, topping Alma by a score of 60-52. Macy Beinborn led the way with 23 and 9, while Corey Whitlock scored a dozen and Emma Berg added 10 off the bench. Cali Papez secured 10 caroms in the winning cause. The big game of the night was the championship game of that tourney, which host Hope won at Millikin's expense, 77-69, in the process handing the Big Blue their first non-con loss of the season and second loss overall. Sophie Darden led the way in the losing effort with 22 and 11, while Elyce Knudsen had a hard-earned 19 points and Bailey Coffman added 12.

Finally, Elmhurst buried Alverno, 81-56, a contest in which the Bluejays somehow managed to take 100 field-goal attempts, 41 of which came from behind the arc. They didn't shoot them well (32% FG, 22% trey), but that's OK; they outrebounded the 'vern by 68-44 (!) and were the recipients of 34 'vern turnovers, 28 of which came by way of EU steals. Lindsay Novak scored 17 off the bench, Nariyah Smith had 13 and 7, Tyreshia Sessions had 10 and 9, and Kristen Lopez scored 10 as well. Shanyce "Utah" Makuei grabbed eight boards and five steals, and Payton Schmidt had four steals to boot, while sneaky-good PG Kristen Bukata posted an 8:1 ratio.

WE BACK.

Pro tip: don't go 2-16 from the field in a quarter. You're gonna have a bad time.

And yet despite that, North Central fought back right as I was walking into the hangar this evening, took a late one point lead, but Emma Berg hit a backbreaking corner three late in the shot clock with 11 seconds left to lead Augie to a 66-63 upset.

Linnea Johansson: 22 pts, 14 reb
Corey Whitlock: 13 pts, 8 reb
Macy Beinborn: 9 pts, 8 reb

Jocelyn Trotter: 15 pts, 11 reb, 4 stl
Elle Sutter: 13 pts, 5 stl
Megan McClure: 8 pts, 4 stl

Super proud of this Cardinal team. For a group picked to finish dead last before the season, to win 12 games (including one against a ranked Millikin team) and get a home tournament game is a success. They will be back.

Here is a Q-cast with Elyce Knudsen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2B6iX0Eego

Great work as always, Bob! Elyce continues to be very impressive in her on-court accomplishments as well as her stellar achievements in the classroom. Such an outstanding player on both ends of the floor for Millikin. And to think playing college softball, not college hoops, was her initial goal! Huge recruiting win for Coach Lett.

First semi goes to Carroll, 75-66 over Millikin.

Caite Knutson dressed tonight but did not warm up or play. Must be an injury  but no limp and nothing wrapped.

Congrats to the Carroll Pios on their CCIW Championship.

Looks to me like IWU and Millikin should join them in the tourney.  When was the last time the CCIW had three women's teams in? 

I'll be following and cheering with interest for a deep run for the league.

The only time in CCIW history that three or more teams from the league went dancing was 1996, when the CCIW had four D3 tourney participants: Carthage, Illinois Wesleyan, Millikin, and Wheaton.

The interesting thing from that tourney was that only one of the four made it out of the first weekend. That was Millikin; the Big Blue bowed out in the Sweet Sixteen.

It was also the D3 tourney debut for the Carthage and Wheaton programs.

Here's a legible bracket :
https://www.ncaa.com/brackets/print/basketball-women/d3/2024

Congrats to the three CCIW entrants into the D3 tourney for turning things around for the league and providing the CCIW with the most representation in the dance it's had in almost three decades!

Congrats especially to Carroll, which will get to host a pod in Van Male for, IIRC, the first time ever.

Quote from: Gregory Sager on February 26, 2024, 06:57:01 PMCongrats to the three CCIW entrants into the D3 tourney for turning things around for the league and providing the CCIW with the most representation in the dance it's had in almost three decades!

Congrats especially to Carroll, which will get to host a pod in Van Male for, IIRC, the first time ever.

Agree!  Really psyched for the Pios hosting this weekend.  I've never seen a game at Van Male in person. But on video anyhow, it looks like the sort of place where visiting teams might need to acclimate more.  Hope that works in Carroll.

Might swing over to Carroll this weekend for a few matchups. They have hosted a few big high school matchups this year so they are definitely ready for the NCAA's to come calling at home.

Starting times (Central) for the three Friday CCIW games are 5:15pm for IWU and Millikin and 8pm for Carroll.