Box Score

Wheaton, Ill. - After scoring the first 15 points of the game, the Wheaton College women's basketball team cruised to a 72-49 victory over North Park University on Saturday.

The Thunder improved its record to 11-3 overall and stayed undefeated in the CCIW at 4-0. The Vikings fell to 7-8 overall and 1-3 in conference. Wheaton has won 36 straight games against North Park, dating back to the 1992-93 season.

The first six minutes of the game was all Wheaton as the hosts jumped out to a 15-0 lead that it would never relinquish. The Thunder displayed a very efficient offense, hit 58 percent from the field in the half (14-of-24) and 63 percent from downtown (5-of-8). Elisabeth Potts got into the mix on offense with 14 first-half points.

After initial shooting woes, North Park scored 10 of the final 12 points of the half to cut the Wheaton lead to 39-28 at the break.

The second half, however, was all Thunder once again. Wheaton displayed good offensive execution and pushed the tempo in transition at every opportunity. As the half went on, the hosts continued to drive the lane, creating good open looks and high percentage shots.

Post defense was where the Thunder locked down the Vikings scoring attack by collapsing on each post entry and forcing difficult shots. For an 11-minute stretch, North Park only scored two points as Wheaton's lead swelled from eight points to 28 points.

Point guard Brooke Olson effectively controlled the game in all facets with 14 points, seven rebonds, five assists and four steals. Laura Karsten also contributed 14 points with seven rebounds. Potts ended up with 14 points and Maris Hovee pulled down nine rebounds to help Wheaton own a rebounding edge of 46-35 in the game.

The Thunder shot 24-of-54 from the field (44 percent), 7-of-16 from three-point range (44 percent) and 17-of-28 from the free throw line (61 percent).

The Vikings ended up shooting 20-of-62 from the field (32 percent), 5-of-17 from beyond the arc (29 percent) and 4-of-7 from the charity stripe (57 percent). Emily Viernesiel led the team with 16 points while Lyndsey Thompson scored 10 points with six rebounds.

The Thunder hit the road against nationally-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University at 5:15 PM on Wednesday.

PHOTO GALLERY, COURTESY OF WWW.THUNDERPHOTOS.COM