SPRINGFIELD, Ill.—Senior forward Morgan Dahlstrom (Grayslake, Illinois) scored 34 points and pulled down a career-high 19 rebounds to lift No. 9/15 University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball to a 64-51 Great Lakes Valley Conference road win over host University of Illinois Springfield Thursday evening.
 Dahlstrom went 15-of-19 from the field and 4-of-5 from the charity stripe to lead a Screaming Eagles squad that had an uncharacteristic shooting night.
The Eagles (20-2, 12-1 GLVC), winners of a league-best nine straight games, shot just 39.4 percent (26-66) from the field and just 6.3 percent (1-16) from the arc.
Early in the contest, the Eagles shooting woes, which included an 11-of-37 (.297) effort from the field and a 0-of-11 performance from three-point range, allowed the Prairie Stars to keep the game close.
USI, however, ended the second quarter with five straight points to take a 25-21 lead into the intermission. The Eagles scored five straight out of the break to build a nine-point lead.
Senior guard Shelbi Patterson, who led Illinois Springfield with 24 points, allowed the Prairie Stars to stay within striking range; but an 8-0 run late in the third period pushed the Eagles’ to double-digits (42-30) for the first time in the contest.
The Prairie Stars (10-11, 4-9 GLVC) pulled to within six with three minutes to play, but back-to-back baskets by Dahlstrom spurred a 7-0 game-ending run for the Eagles.
Aided by senior guard/forward Kaydie Grooms (Marshall, Illinois), the Eagles had a better offensive performance in the second half as they went a 15-of-29 (.517) from the field, including 8-of-12 (.667) in the fourth quarter.
Grooms finished the game with 16 points, including 14 in the second half. Junior forward Kacy Eschweiler (St. Charles, Missouri) finished with four points and a season-high 11 rebounds, while senior guard Randa Harshbarger (Philo, Illinois) and sophomore guard/forward Morgan Sherwood (Charleston, Illinois) each chipped five points.
USI dominated the lane, holding a 45-30 rebounding advantage while outscoring the Prairie Stars 40-16 in the paint. The Eagles held the Prairie Stars to just 30.2 percent (16-53) from the field, including 26.1 percent (6-23) in the opening period.
The Eagles return to action Saturday at 5:30 p.m. when they host Bellarmine University for Senior Night at the Physical Activities Center. USI will honor its senior class of Dahlstrom, Grooms, Harshbarger, and manager Sydney Session following Saturday’s contest.
Bellarmine (14-9, 9-5 GLVC) defeated McKendree University, 83-72, Thursday evening in Lebanon, Illinois.
Notes: USI missed its first 15 shots from three-point range before Grooms splashed in the Eagles’ only make of the night…Dahlstrom recorded USI’s first 30-point, 10-rebound effort since Anna Hackert racked up 35 points and 16 rebounds against Indianapolis February 19, 2015…the Eagles have held their last six opponents to less than 33.3 percent from the field, bringing their league-leading field goal defense to 34.8 percent.
Newspaper Box Score
Southern Indiana vs Illinois Springfield
2/8/18 5:30 p.m. at Springfield, IL
SOUTHERN INDIANA 64, ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD 51
SOUTHERN INDIANA (20-2, 12-1 GLVC)
Dahlstrom, Morgan 15-19 4-5 34; Grooms, Kaydie 5-11 5-5 16; Harshbarger, Randa 2-6 1-2 5; Sherwood, Morgan 2-4 1-2 5; Eschweiler, Kacy 2-11 0-0 4; DeHart, Emma 0-1 0-0 0; Guy, Imani 0-0 0-0 0; Davidson, Alex 0-9 0-0 0; Rowan, Mikayla 0-4 0-0 0; Johnson, Ashley 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-66 11-14 64.
ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD (10-11, 4-9 GLVC)
Patterson, Shelbi 9-20 4-4 24; Rosner, Katelyn 3-6 3-4 9; Ramsey, Destiny 4-9 0-0 8; Fortune, Tehya 0-10 6-6 6; Sangster, Jasmine 0-4 2-2 2; Mefford, Brianna 0-2 2-2 2; Meissner, Val 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 16-53 17-18 51.
Southern Indiana…………..  14  11  19  20 -  64
Illinois Springfield……….  13   8  15  15 -  51
3-point goals—Southern Indiana 1-16 (Grooms, Kaydie 1-5; Harshbarger, Randa 0-1; Sherwood, Morgan 0-1; Eschweiler, Kacy 0-3; DeHart, Emma 0-1; Davidson, Alex 0-4; Dahlstrom, Morgan 0-1), Illinois Springfield 2-12 (Patterson, Shelbi 2-5; Fortune, Tehya 0-6; Meissner, Val 0-1). Fouled out—Southern Indiana-None, Illinois Springfield-None. Rebounds-Southern Indiana 45 (Dahlstrom, Morgan 19), Illinois Springfield 30 (Sangster, Jasmine 5; Rosner, Katelyn 5). Assists-Southern Indiana 10 (Eschweiler, Kacy 3), Illinois Springfield 12 (Fortune, Tehya 4). Total fouls-Southern Indiana 14, Illinois Springfield 17. Technical fouls–Southern Indiana-None, Illinois Springfield-None. Attendance—164
Southern Indiana is ranked No. 15 in the latest WBCA NCAA Division II Poll and No. 9 in the latest D2SIDA Poll.
