DANVILLE, Ill. – The No. 10 ranked Parkland College women’s basketball team never trailed in a hard-fought 70-65 win at Danville Area Community College on Wednesday, February 15th. The Cobras (19-2) (6-0) got to the line in the fourth quarter, going 12-16 to close out the Jaguars (12-8) (4-3) on the road. Sophomore Shae Bell (20 points, 8-8 FG) led the Cobras in scoring, and freshman Alyssa Cole (17 points, 11 rebounds) records her 10th double-double of the season in the win. Parkland shot 54% (27-50) from the field and outrebounded DACC 36-27 as the Cobras completed the season sweep over the Jaguars.
After the win, Parkland College head coach called the game a “great team road win” saying, “I am super proud of our squad with the intensity they came out with. We had some lulls but kept fighting and kept our heads in the game. We had great minutes from our bench and that made a huge impact.”
“We’ll continue to work on area we need to improve, but I am proud of the win our squad fought for,” Litchfield concluded.
The Cobras struck first, leading 8-2 when DACC took a timeout with 6:16 to play in the first quarter, but the Jaguars quickly tied the game at eight out of the timeout. Parkland led 17-12 at the start of the second quarter before a 17-4 Cobra run put them up 34-16 with under two minutes to go, their largest lead of the game. Alyssa Cole buried a turnaround jumper at the buzzer, and Parkland went into halftime with a 36-22 edge. DACC opened the second half with a 15-6 run, cutting the Cobra lead to 42-37 before Parkland took a timeout with 4:21 to go in the third. Parkland held a four-point, 46-42 lead at the end of the quarter, but DACC tied it at 48 with 8:44 remaining, the first tie since 8-8. The Cobras responded quickly with an 8-0 run to retake control with just over six minutes to play. The Jaguars cut the deficit to 58-56, but a costly late ejection gave the Cobras some breathing room, and Chole Gould converted a three-point play with 2:07 to go to put Parkland up 64-58. Gould led the team with five free throws, including two big ones with 27 seconds left to give the Cobras a 69-61 lead, and Parkland closed out Danville 70-65.
Statistical Overview:
- Shae Bell: 20 points, 8-8 FG, 3 rebounds
- Alyssa Cole: 17 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists
- Kenzey Decker: 10 points, 3 assists, 2 steals
- Mallory Cyrulik: 6 points, 3-3 FG, 4 rebounds, 2 assists
- Chloe Gould: 7 points, 3 assists 2 steals
Up next, the Cobras travel to Quincy, Illinois, on Saturday, February 18th, for a game against John Wood Community College. Tip-off against the Blazers (7-15) (1-4) is scheduled for 1:00 PM on Saturday.
