Naperville, Ill. -- The first game of 2023 for the Wheaton women's basketball team went as well as the Thunder could have hoped it would, as the squad traveled to nearby Naperville for a matchup with the North Central Cardinals and the visitors secured a comfortable 81-65 victory. The win marked Wheaton's third straight in conference play, and the team now sits in a tie for second place in the CCIW.
Anna Fernandez scored a team-high 18 points in this evening's victory, while
Annika Richardson and
Ellie Cassel both registered double-doubles to set Wheaton on their way.
Wheaton out-scored North Central in all four quarters in a comprehensive showing. The Thunder shot nearly 44% from the floor and improved their percentage in each quarter while holding their suburban rivals to a 31.3% mark for the game, including a 9-33 tally in the second half. The Cardinals posted better figures from the free throw and three-point lines in tonight's matchup, but it ultimately counted for little as Wheaton enjoyed advantages in most of the statistical categories. Second chance points was the single biggest disparity in the box score stats, as Wheaton converted 23 of them but NCC managed only 11. The Thunder also excelled at crashing the boards, grabbing 53 rebounds to their hosts' 39.
Both teams took some time to warm up offensively, as only four points were scored in the opening three and a half minutes of the contest. A fast break layup by Fernandez gave Wheaton their largest lead of the first quarter at 10-4, but a seven-point run by the hosts saw the Thunder's early momentum dissipate. Cassel (
pictured right)
knocked down a pair of important baskets in the final minute of the opening frame to help Wheaton restore the lead, and the Thunder held a two-point advantage heading into the second quarter. After a back-and-forth beginning of the period,
Caroline Sikkink and
Kate Oliver combined for five points to stretch the visitors' lead to 23-16. But just when it appeared as though Wheaton was starting to pull away, North Central rattled off six straight points to claim a 30-27 edge with just over two minutes remaining in the half. The Thunder responded perfectly to the pressure, however, and scored eight unanswered to end the first half, a run punctuated by a three-pointer from Richardson and a layup in the lane by Fernandez inside the final 40 seconds.
This late surge of points and momentum carried over into the second half, and Wheaton out-scored North Central by eight points in the third quarter to move a step closer to victory. Fernandez drained a three-pointer at the 7:36 mark of the third period to put Wheaton up by 12, and the home side would fail to get within single digits of the Thunder again until halfway through the fourth quarter. The Cardinals converted a layup in the paint with five minutes remaining in the game to lower the deficit back down to nine points, but
Caylee Hermanson responded immediately with a three, and the Thunder were able to see out the convincing result from that point on.
Anna Fernandez registered five rebounds, two assists, and a steal to go along with her game-leading point total.
Annika Richardson posted 14 points and as many boards, as she led all players in rebounding and assists with five to her name in the latter category.
Ellie Cassel joined Richardson on 14 points and scooped up ten rebounds, while also earning two assists and blocking one shot.
Caroline Sikkink and
Caylee Hermanson both reached double figures in points for Wheaton tonight, with the former putting up 11 and the latter tallying ten. Sikkink snagged seven rebounds, dished out two assists, and earned one takeaway.
After kicking off the new year with an impressive road performance, the Thunder women's team will look to make it two in one week, as Wheaton travels south for an important conference clash with Millikin on Saturday. The game is scheduled to tip off at 2 PM in Decatur.
