ELMHURST, Ill. – The Elmhurst women's basketball team closed out its regular season with an 82-61 loss to Illinois Wesleyan University in a first-round preview of the CCIW Tournament.
 
Elmhurst wrapped up the regular season with a 13-12 overall record and 9-7 mark in league play. Illinois Wesleyan, ranked 16th in the latest D3hoops.com top-25 poll, finished the regular season with a 22-3 record and a 15-1 CCIW record. The Titans secured the top spot and the right to host the upcoming CCIW Tournament. Elmhurst will rematch with the Titans in the first round of the tournament on XXX.
 
Elmhurst raced out to a seven-point cushion just six minutes into the game. Kaela Jones scored 10 of Elmhurst's first 16 points to help the Bluejays' build an early 16-9 lead. Illinois Wesleyan answered back, pulling even at 19-19 just before the end of the quarter. Courtney O'Donnell's buzzer-beating layup gave Elmhurst a 21-19 lead entering the second quarter.
 
The Titans quickly surged in front in the second, opening with a 7-1 run to build a 26-22 lead. Elmhurst cut the deficit own to one with four minutes remaining, but the Titans used a 9-2 run over the next 2:10 to take their largest lead of the night at eight points. IWU carried the eight-point cushion into halftime, leading 39-31. After shooting 46.7 percent (7-of-15) in the opening quarter, the Bluejays went cold in the second, hitting just 2-of-11 shots (18.2 percent).
 
Elmhurst also struggled from the foul line, hitting just 11-of-20 (55.0 percent) in the game's first 20 minutes. The Titans also outscored Elmhurst 24-10 in the paint while taking advantage of 12 turnovers to score 10 points.
 
Illinois Wesleyan wasted little time pulling away in the third quarter. After Elmhurst scored the opening bucket of the quarter, the Titans ripped off the next 11 points to open up a commanding 17-point cushion with 5:44 left in the quarter. The Titans led by as many as 21 points and carried a 19-point (65-46) into the fourth. IWU continued to extend its lead in the fourth, building a 27-point cushion before coasting to the 82-61 victory.
 
Elmhurst finished the contest shooting 34.5 percent (19-of-55) from the floor, including 21.1 percent (4-of-19) from three-point range. Jones led the way with 17 points and four assists while Mikaela Eppard recorded a double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds. Hannah Henderson added seven points and six rebounds.
 
IWU shot 49.2 percent (32-of-65) from the floor. The Titans dominated inside, outscoring Elmhurst 48-26 in the paint. The Titans turned 22 Elmhurst turnovers into 19 points. Riley Brovelli came off the bench to lead the Titans with 13 points while Ashley Schneider chipped in with 12 points and seven rebounds. Molly McGraw added 11 points while Raven Hughes scored 10.
 
Elmhurst and IWU will rematch in the opening round of the CCIW Tournament on Friday, February 23.