East Peoria, IL - The #5 Illinois Central College women's basketball team lost 65-53 to #3 Kirkwood on Saturday afternoon in the Cougars' home opener at Ramsey Gym. 

Kirkwood used their size advantage to out-rebound the Cougars 54-33 and held ICC to just 19-63 field goal shooting (including 3-22 from three-point range) on the afternoon . Kirkwood improved to 2-0 while ICC dropped to 2-1.

"We were stagnant offensively which didn't get us in the flow today," coach Karrie Redeker said. "Some of that was due to Kirkwood's defense but we seemed to be a step slow today. We got crushed on the boards---rebounding is all desire so that's something our staff will look to correct." 

Kirkwood took control early by scoring in the paint for a 17-10 first quarter lead. Piper Whiteman gave a spark off the bench, hitting two three-pointers in the second quarter to go along with four points from Lily Luczkowiak, but KCC still held a 33-25 halftime lead.

The Cougars continued to struggle to get much going offensively while the Eagles nailed two treys in the third quarter for a 53-37 lead heading into the final frame. An Addy Engel trey, six points from Maziah Shelton, and two baskets by Emily Dana in the fourth provided the final scoring.

The team will travel to Port Huron to participate in the prestigious Thumbcoast Classic where they will face #7 Harcum (NJ). Six of the participating teams are ranked in the Top 25 NJCAA DII poll; the full schedule appears below. 

Statistical leaders
Lily Luczkowiak | 12 points
Maizah Shelton | 10 points, 6 rebounds
Kam Heider | 8 points, 7 rebounds
I BEAT THE DEAN: Emily Dana, Piper Whiteman

WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE COUGARS
at Thumbcoast Classic, Port Huron MI
Thurs, Nov. 13 at 12pm CST
Livestream: https://stream.prestosports.com/stclaircountycc

THUMBCOAST CLASSIC Game Schedule - all times listed are CST
Thursday, November 13
12:00 PM – #5 Illinois Central vs. #7 Harcum
2:00 PM – Jackson vs. #2 Pima
4:00 PM – Lansing vs. #18 Lake Land
6:00 PM – #8 St. Clair vs. #19 Niagara
 
Friday, November 14
12:00 PM – Loser of 12:00 vs. Loser of 2:00
2:00 PM – Loser of 4:00 vs. Loser of 6:00
4:00 PM – Winner of 12:00 vs. Winner of 2:00
6:00 PM – Winner of 4:00 vs. Winner of 6:00
 
Saturday, November 15
11:00 PM – 7th/8th Place Game – Loser of 12:00 vs. Loser of 2:00
1:00 PM – 5th/6th Place Game – Winner of 12:00 vs. Winner of 2:00
3:00 PM – 3rd/4th Place Game – Loser of 4:00 vs. Loser of 6:00
5:00 PM – Championship Game – Winner of 4:00 vs. Winner of 6:00
 
OTHER: Prior to tip-off, the team presented a plaque to the family of late assistant coach, Greg Martin, thanking them for Greg's 27 years of service with the program.