Joplin, MO - The #12-seeded Illinois Central College Women's Basketball team (27-9) left it all out on the floor in the final game of the season, but came up just short, losing 65-59 to #10 Mid Michigan (31-5) on Saturday afternoon in the NJCAA 7th Place Game. The Cougars had a rough first half, trailing by as many as 22 points early in the third quarter, but battled all the way back to take the lead late in the game before the Lakers capitalized on untimely turnovers to grab the win.

"Very proud of our team," coach Karrie Redeker said. "We were kind of tight in the first half and could have easily folded. It speaks to the true character of our team that we rallied behind each other. We've said all season that this is a special group and they proved it again, one last time." 

All-Tournament pick Savannah Orgeron led ICC with 17 points, and Addy Engel had 14 points, while Lily Luczkowiak had 12 rebounds. The Cougars, who were third in the nation in field goal percentage at 46%, struggled offensively all day, managing just a 20-60 field goal shooting performance (33%). ICC did hold Mid Michigan to 35 points below their scoring average, but allowed the Lakers to hit nine three-pointers. 

Both teams struggled early to find an offensive rhythm as Mid Michigan held a 6-2 lead at the 4:55 mark. Kaitlin White, Orgeron, and Kamryn Heider all nailed treys, and Engel added a basket, but the Cougars had five turnovers in the quarter and the Lakers hit three treys of their own to take a 19-13 lead. 

The second quarter was the one that hurt the most as Mid Michigan added four more three-pointers while the ICC offense sputtered with eight more turnovers and only two field goals in the frame from Orgeron and Luczkowiak to trail 37-20 at intermission. 

The Lakers started the third quarter with four straight points and their biggest lead of the game at 44-22. That's when the resilience, with seasons, with careers on the line, kicked in. Larissa Taylor had an offensive putback and Engel nailed a three-pointer from the left win (assist Addi Swadinsky). Swadinsky then added two more free throws and an old-fashioned three-point play to trim the deficit to 46-32. An Orgeron basket made it 50-34, helping the Cougars gain momentum for what would be a 9-2 run to close the quarter as Engel had a three-point play and combined with Taylor for four more freebies to trail 50-41 heading into the final stanza. 

Orgeron nailed a trey and had a putback, but the Lakers answered with a three-pointer to stay ahead 53-46. The Cougars then locked in defensively, harrassing the Laker shooters into misses and turnovers which led to a 9-0 run as White had a bucket, Orgeron scored on a post up and three-ball (assists Taylor and Swadinsky), and Engel scored inside to give the Cougars a 55-53 lead with just under five minutes remaining. 

Unfortunately, that would be the only lead for ICC, as the Lakers scored two baskets and forced four straight Cougar turnovers to grab the lead back at 57-55. Heider's layup tied it at 57-all, and then two Luczkowiak free throws drew ICC even at 59-all with 1:45 to play, but Mid Michigan scored on their final three possessions while the Cougars went scoreless to finish the game.

COUGAR GAME STATISTICS
Savannah Orgeron | 17 points, 2 rebounds
Addy Engel | 14 points, 4 rebounds
Kaitlin White | 7 points, 5 rebounds
Lily Luczkowiak | 6 points, 6 rebounds
Addi Swadinsky | 5 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds
Kamryn Heider | 5 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists
Larissa Taylor | 4 points, 12 rebounds, 2 blocks
Lauren Maas | 1 point, 3 rebounds
Madison Jobe | 2 rebounds

2024-2025 SEASON STATISTICAL LEADERS
Points Per Game | Lily Luczkowiak (14.1)
Field Goal Percentage | Lily Luczkowiak (57.1%)
3-Point Percentage | Kamryn Heider (37.1%)
Free Throw Percentage | Cora DeSutter (84.9%)
Rebounds Per Game | Lily Luczkowiak (5.1 rpg)
Assists Per Game | Addi Swadinsky (5.0 apg)
Steals Per Game | Lily Luczkowiak (2.1 spg)
Blocks Per Game | Larissa Taylor (1.3 bpg)

ICC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL IN THE 'STATS' TOP 25
Free Throw Total-Attempts | 2nd | 519-709
Home Attendance | 2nd | 3,155
Field Goal Percentage | 3rd | 45.9%
Points | 4th | 2,856
Free Throw Percentage | 4th | 73.2%
Assists Per Game | 6th | 19.4
Field Goal Total-Attempts | 7th | 1,052-2,293
Free Throws Made Per Game | 8th | 14.4
Three-Point Percentage | 10th | 32.1%
Offensive Efficiency | 12th | 1.020
Points Per Game | 14th | 79.3
Three-Point Total-Attempts | 18th | 233-726
Field Goals Made Per Game | 18th | 29.2
NET Efficiency | 24th | 0.207

WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE COUGARS
2025 ICC Jamboree
Saturday, October 4th - 9:00 AM
at Ramsey Gym / CougarPlex