thirdEast Peoria, IL - Addy Engel's 22 points and Maziah Shelton's third consecutive double-double (17 rebounds & 11 points) led the #10 Illinois Central College women's basketball team to a 76-66 victory over #2 Lincoln Land on Saturday afternoon in Region 24 action in the team's 8th annual STRONGER TOGETHER game. Lily Luczkowiak added 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists for the Cougars, while Ellie VanMeenen pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds and had 8 points. 

With the win, ICC improved to 18-3 overall and 5-2 in Region 24 while Lincoln Land dropped to 19-2 and 6-2.

"Addy had a great first half offensively to really set the tone for us," coach Karrie Redeker said, "and Maziah was a beast on the boards on both ends to help us control the game. We would've liked to have finished the game a little better but our kids hung together to get another quality win." 

Engel scored ten of ICC's first fourteen points for a 14-10 advantage. Shelton then hit Larissa Taylor for a layup and added a basket of her own on a drive, followed by a VanMeenen trey (assist Taylor) for a 21-12 lead. A'Meah Lester went coast-to-coast for an old-fashioned three-point play and a 24-17 Cougar lead.

Engel opened with a trey to start the second period as ICC held a 28-23 lead. The Cougars then turned up the defense to go on a 13-0 run as an Engel steal led to a Kam Heider layup, and two steals by Emily Dana turned into scores by Lester and Engel as ICC went up 41-25 at the half.

VanMeenen opened the half with a three-pointer from the top of the key and Luczkowiak scored twice inside along with scores by Engel and Shelton. A Hannah West three-pointer and another Shelton put-back gave ICC their biggest lead of the afternoon at 57-35, however the Loggers went on a small run to cut their deficit to 63-43 heading into the fourth. 

LLCC used a 9-0 run to open the final stanza to make the score 63-54 with just under six minutes to play but Engel answered with a big offensive rebound for a score, followed by a Taylor jumper and a 67-54 lead. LLCC tossed in three treys in the closing minutes but the Cougars held on for the win.

COUGAR LEADERS
Addy Engel | 22 points, 4 rebounds
Maziah Shelton | 17 rebounds, 11 points
Lily Luczkowiak | 12 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists
Ellie VanMeenen | 10 rebounds, 8 points, 4 assists
Kam Heider | 9 points, 3 assists
Larissa Taylor | 6 points, 6 rebounds
A'Meah Lester | 5 points, 2 assists
Hannah West | 3 points
Emily Dana | 2 steals

I BEAT THE DEAN: Addy Engel & Maziah Shelton

WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE COUGARS
Wednesday, Jan. 28 
at Kaskaskia at 5:30 pm
Centralia, IL 
Livestream: https://fan.hudl.com/usa/il/centralia/organization/48212/kaskaskia-college
Audio: https://icc-womens-basketball.mixlr.com/