Women's Basketball Earns First Win in Dominant Fashion

Shannon O'Donnell's 27 points led the Scarlet Hawks to victory
Shannon O'Donnell's 27 points led the Scarlet Hawks to victory

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - The Illinois Tech women's basketball team made a victorious trip south on Saturdya afternoon to Robert Morris University-Springfield. After jumping out ahead early, the Scarlet Hawks never looked back en route to its first win of the season, a 68-52 victory.

How it Happened

  • Tech may have had its best quarter of the season in the first, outscoring the Eagles 22-12. This was in large part to a starting unit that scored 65 of the game's 68 points and had two double-digit rebounders.
  • The lead continued to build in the second quarter, as the Scarlet Hawks took a 41-23 break into the intermission. Defense was a key component, holding the Eagles to just 22.9% shooting in the first half. It was during this stage of the contest where the Scarlet Hawks built a 22-point lead (39-17), its largest of the game and the season.
  • In the third, RMU managed to play the Scarlet Hawks even at 17-17 as its shooting began to show a slight incresae.
  • Tech struggled offensivley in the fourth, but thanks to another great defensive quarter, the lead was never in danger. The Scarlet Hawks held the Eagles to just 12 fourth-quarter points and kept them under 30% again (29.6%) for the entire second half.

Scarlet Hawks Standouts

  • As she has on many occasions this season, superb freshman Shannon O'Donnell impressed. She led all scorers with 27 points while making 11-of-15 attempts from the charity stripe. She also had six rebounds, two assists, and two steals. 
  • Madison Davis continued her shooting streak, going 5-of-7 from beyond the arc and tallying 18 points. She also had seven rebounds and three steals.
  • Erin Nelson tallied a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds, her first of the season. Erin Efimoff also crashed the boards, ending with 10 rebounds.

Stats to Know

  • Tech dominated the glass, outrebounding the Eagles 57-44.
  • Tech's 10 turnovers are a season-low.
  • The Scarlet Hawks held RMU to just 25.8% shooting for the game.
  • Tech's 18-point halftime lead was its largest at the intermission since February 10, 2014 when the Scarlet Hawks led Mount Mary University by 24 at the break (35-11).
  • The contest was O'Donnell's third straight with at least 27 points, sixth game with at least 20 points, and seventh game with double-digit free throw attempts. 

Up Next

  • Tech looks to start a winning streak on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. at Maranatha Baptist University.