IWC women split games in Wisconsin tournament

MILWAUKEE, WIS. ? The Iowa Wesleyan women?s basketball team split a trip to Wisconsin for the La Quinta Stritch Holiday Classic hosted by Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) University.

The Tigers won their opening game of the Classic when Adilene Villalobos came off the bench with a career-high 16 points and Danielle Des Jardins hit the go-ahead free throws with 41 seconds left in the game to claim a 53-52 win over the University of St. Francis (Ill.) on Monday night.

The shorthanded St. Francis team dressed just seven players and were competing without their top two scorers.

Still, the IWC women trailed for most of the game. It was Villalobos who rescued the Tiger offense with 16 points off the bench, including four three-pointers. Anna Jones added 15 points and nine rebounds and Ashley Kruse tallied 13 points before fouling out. Des Jardins led the Tigers with six assists and added a game-high five steals.

Last night, IWC faced the host Wolves, currently ranked 18th in NAIA Division II, and dropped the contest 73-43.

Kruse was the high-scorer for the Tigers this time, putting 12 points on the board. Villalobos, who was later named to the All-Tournament team, was close behind, adding 11 points.

Des Jardins and Samantha Hodge scored five points each against the Wolves. Jones grabbed seven boards and dished three assists for the Tigers in the game.

The Tigers return home 3-7 on the season, and will take the court again on Dec. 30, when they will travel to Hillsboro, Kan., to take on Tabor College, the host of the Tabor Holiday Basketball Classic. They finish the Classic on Dec. 31 against Sterling College.