Final Box
INDIANAPOLIS - Eastern Illinois women's basketball fell on the road Friday afternoon. Butler secured their first win of the year beating EIU 72-37. The Panthers fall to 1-1 on the season, while the Bulldogs improve to 1-0.
The Bulldogs set the offensive pace early in the first quarter as they jumped out to an 8-0 run over the Panthers.
Karle Pace hit EIU's first field goal of the game with just under seven minutes left in the quarter. Butler would force an EIU time out with three consecutive jumpers in the paint.
Grace McRae and
Taylor Steele connected from the field to chip away at Butler's lead, but the Bulldogs closed the quarter with an 8-1 run.
Butler continued their run into the second quarter outscoring the Panthers 20-1 from the 55 second mark in the first quarter to the 4:43 mark in the second quarter.
Carmen Tellez hit a three-pointer off the bench to spark EIU's second quarter offense. The Bulldogs headed into halftime with a 41-17 lead over EIU forcing the Panthers to shoot just 25 percent from the field.
The Panthers found their momentum in the third quarter scoring 15 points to the Bulldogs 16. Steele scored eight points in the quarter, while Tellez and Pace combined for six points. Despite EIU's offensive production, Butler took a 72-37 win.
Steele finished with a team-best 11 points. Pace followed behind with eight points and a team-best four rebounds.
Grace Lennox led the team with four steals. The Panthers finished the game shooting 25 percent from the field.
Tori Schickel completed a double-double for Butler with 16 points and 12 boards. Kristen Spolyar and Michelle Weaver also finish in double-digits with 15 and 11 points, respectively. The Bulldogs shot 50 percent from the field in the game. Weaver was a perfect 5-for-5. Butler out-rebounded EIU 47-20 and scored 48 points in the paint to EIU's 10.
The Panthers will be back in action next week with a pair of home games. EIU will host Lincoln Christian on Monday Nov. 12 at pm and Purdue Fort Wayne on Thursday Nov. 15 at 12 pm.