FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media RelationsBox ScoreROMEOVILLE, Ill. (Feb. 25, 2016)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside women's basketball had fifth-ranked Lewis University against the ropes on Thursday night in the Great Lakes Valley Conference regular season finale but was unable to hang on down the stretch, falling 66-60 inside Neil Carey Arena.
Stephanie Furr led the Rangers with a double-double in a showdown with 11 lead changes and three ties.
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Furr drilled a three with 6:44 remaining in the game, giving the visiting Rangers (13-13, 7-11 GLVC) their largest lead of the contest at 54-49. The host Flyers (27-1, 18-0 GLVC) answered with a 17-6 run to close out the game, including nine of the final 11 points to become the first team since the 2005-2006 season to survive GLVC play without absorbing a loss.
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Kristin Conniff drained a three for the opening points of the ballgame as the visiting Rangers owned an early advantage before the Flyers ripped off eight in a row to stake a 13-8 edge with two minutes left in the opening quarter.
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Lewis led 15-12 after one quarter and had its lead swell to eight with 7:23 left before halftime before pesky UW-Parkside battled back, using a 13-4 run to reestablish a lead with 2:20 left before the break. Lewis hit a jumper to seize the lead before Conniff hit a jumper with 55 ticks remaining as Parkside owned a slim 30-29 lead at intermission.
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UW-Parkside trailed 45-42 after three quarters of action before opening the fourth on a 12-4 run to seize the 54-49 lead. Consecutive layups from Conniff got things going while
Bailey North collected a three the old fashioned way during the spurt.
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Furr led the Rangers with 17 points and 10 boards while Conniff and
Brittney Fair added 14 and 13 points, respectively.
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Jessica Kelliher and Moriah Brawner-Henley was a one-two punch for the Flyers, combining for 45 of the team's 66 points. Kelliher led the way with 25 while Brawner-Henley added 20 along with eight rebounds and five assists.
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The Rangers hit the road to open the 2016 GLVC Tournament, facing Rockhurst University at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
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