FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations

Box Score

SAINT CHARLES, Mo. (Mar. 6, 2015)-- The fourth-seeded University of Wisconsin-Parkside women's basketball team opened up postseason play in style on Friday afternoon, netting a 65-61 victory over fifth-seeded Quincy University in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament Quarterfinals inside Family Arena.

The Rangers (22-6) led by as many as 13 points in the contest but ultimately needed to convert free throws down the stretch to fend off and eliminate the Hawks (16-12).

UW-Parkside and Quincy traded jabs in the opening minutes, with four lead changes in the first three minutes before a 13-2 run gave the Rangers' a double-digit barrier with 12:26 remaining in the first half. Kristin Conniff ignited the spurt, sinking a three to reclaim the lead for the Rangers who never trailed the rest of the afternoon.

Parkside's advantage ballooned to 13 points off a Maddie Johnston layup with 9:13 left in the first half but Quincy was willing to lay down easy, crawling back and tying the game at 33-33 with a Maggie Cunningham jumper at the buzzer to close the opening half.

The score was tied again at 35 early in the second half before the Rangers netted 10 of the next 13 points, opening up a 45-38 lead with 15:16 remaining off a Conniff layup. QU closed to within three multiple times before a reducing the gap to just two at 59-57 with 1:23 left off an Anika Webster layup.

Parkside responded over the final minute, sinking all four free throws, including two from Gaby Bronson and two from Conniff along with a jumper from Conniff with 17 ticks left as the Rangers held on for the four-point decision, advancing to Saturday's GLVC Semifinals.

Conniff paced the Rangers, matching a season-high with 19 points, shooting three-for-four from beyond the arc while grabbing three steals. Jennifer Blunt added 10 points and four boards while Bronson and Stephanie Furr each chipped in nine. Jessica Prince led the Rangers on the glass with eight rebounds.

Kara Gerbus led Quincy with 17 points while Webster notched a double-double off the bench with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Maggie Cunningham was the third Hawk in double figures, ending the afternoon with 14 points.

UW-Parkside put the clamps down on the league's top three-point shooting club in the GLVC, limiting Quincy to shooting just 23.1 percent (three-for-13) from beyond the arc.

Parkside will face the winner of this afternoon's clash between GLVC West Champion and top-seeded Drury University and eighth-seeded University of Indianapolis on Saturday in a GLVC Tournament Semifinal at 6 p.m.