CHICAGO, Ill. -- North Park women's basketball improved to 2-0 on the season Tuesday night with a 66-61 victory over Illinois Tech inside Carlson Gymnasium. The win marked the first home victory for first-year head coach Kira Mowen.
Senior forward Caroline Long led the Vikings with 15 points and nine rebounds, while senior guard Teresa Morrissey tied a career high with 13 points. Senior guard Aliyah Hershberger added 12 points, and junior guard Aliesha Peterson recorded a career-high 11 assists as North Park assisted on 20 of its 28 made field goals.
The teams battled evenly through the opening quarter, with freshman guard Makayla Hill scoring a layup in the closing seconds to tie the game at 19-19.
Illinois Tech (1-1) pushed ahead in the second quarter and built its largest lead of the night at 27-21 midway through the quarter. North Park answered with baskets from sophomore forward Layla Murry and senior forward Shay Bowen to stay within striking distance before the Scarlet Hawks carried a 31-29 advantage into halftime.
The Vikings took control in the third quarter with a game-changing 14-0 run over a span of nearly four minutes. Trailing 33-29 early in the period, North Park got the surge started with a basket from Morrissey before back-to-back Illinois Tech turnovers led to transition opportunities. Morrissey converted a steal into a fast-break layup, and Peterson followed with a steal of her own that led to another Viking basket. Long scored six points during the run, including a putback and a finish inside off a Peterson assist, while Peterson distributed three assists during the stretch. By the time Long capped the rally with another basket in the paint, North Park had turned a four-point deficit into a 43-33 advantage and seized momentum for the remainder of the evening.
Illinois Tech refused to go away, trimming the deficit to 60-59 on a Katie Westwood three-pointer with 4:23 remaining. North Park responded with timely plays down the stretch as Hershberger knocked down two free throws with just over two minutes to play and Morrissey added another from the line in the closing moments.
After the Scarlet Hawks cut the lead back to two, Hershberger converted a layup off a pass from junior guard Naomi Kaskavitch with 14 seconds left to give the Vikings breathing room and seal the victory.
North Park controlled the glass throughout the contest, outrebounding Illinois Tech 44-26 and holding a 48-32 advantage in points in the paint. The Vikings also turned 23 Scarlet Hawk turnovers into 19 points.
Illinois Tech was led by Sydney Johnson's 12 points and Nadia Adeleke's 11 points. The Scarlet Hawks received 34 points from their bench and shot 44.4 percent from the field while holding the Vikings to zero made threes.
Comments from Coach Mowen
"I am extremely proud of these young ladies tonight," said Coach Mowen following North Park's home-opening win. "With being the stature that we are, we have to put a heavy focus on rebounding, both offensively and defensively. I would love to be able to convert more on our offensive rebounds but that will be work for later in season. I thought our starters and those who came off the bench did an exceptional job rebounding the ball in the fourth quarter and securing possessions. Another highlight that makes me happy as a coach is we assisted on 20 of 28 baskets. I'm really proud to get the first home win accomplished and now we can turn our focus into climbing the ladder and elevating our culture here at North Park. Go Vikings!!"
What's Next?
The Vikings (2-0) get back on the road Thursday, November 12, traveling to Notre Dame, Indiana to take on Saint Mary's College (1-0). Tipoff inside the Angela Athletics & Wellness Complex is set for 6:00 p.m. CT.
