Women's Basketball Rallies In Second Half But Falls 74-66 To Ferris State

Nov. 24, 2009

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - Lewis came back from a five-point halftime deficit to take the lead in the second, but in the end the Ferris State Bulldogs pulled away for a 74-66 victory thanks to a 12-0 run with seven minutes left.

The Lewis offense was hampered by foul trouble to all-region junior forward Jenny Turpel (Johnsburg, Ill./Johnsburg). She earned her fourth foul three minutes into the second half. Turpel finished with just four points on 2-of-5 shooting. She entered the contest with 28 straight games of double-digit points.

Junior Kady Currin (Cincinnati, Ohio/Seton) led Lewis with 14 points on 6-of-13 shooting. Senior Kelly Dianis (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) totaled 11 points. Sophomore Devon Carbaugh (Sterling, Ill./Sterling) added 10.

Lewis earned 16 trips to the free throw line in the first half, and had just four in the second. Ferris State took just six from the line in the first and shot 20 in the second.

The Flyers struggled from the floor, shooting just 39 percent (24-of-62). Ferris State shot 55 percent (27-of-49). The Flyers made 5-of-26 3-point attempts while Ferris State missed all four of their attempts.

"I think if we would knock down some shots, it would help us on both ends," head coach Lisa Carlsen said. "The right people are shooting the ball on the outside they just aren't going in right now."

Lewis trailed 30-25 at the break, but came out of the break hot. The Flyers took a 42-39 lead on a layup by Carbaugh with 13:30 remaining. Freshman Labrenthia Murdock (Round Lake, Ill./Round Lake) tallied an assist on the play. However Ferris State stormed back and took a 62-50 advantage with four minutes remaining thanks to a 12-0 run.

"We had a hard time defending inside in the second half with some key people off the court," Carlsen said. "We just had too many breakdowns inside."

Becci Houdek led the Bulldogs with 14 points. Ferris State improves to 1-2. The Flyers fall to 0-2.

Lewis is back on action on Saturday at Neil Carey Arena for an in-region contest against Saginaw Valley State at 3 p.m.

A Catholic university sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, Lewis offers nearly 80 undergraduate majors and programs of study, accelerated degree completion options for working adults, various aviation programs and 22 graduate programs in nine fields. The 10th largest private, not-for-profit university in Illinois is being honored for the sixth consecutive year by The Princeton Review and U.S. News & World Report. For more information please visit www.lewisu.edu.