Third Quarter Outburst Lifts Fontbonne To Sixth Straight Win

CARLINVILLE, Ill.—The Fontbonne University women's basketball team closed out the month of January with a six-game winning streak after coming away with the 80-56 win over Blackburn.

Final: Fontbonne 80, Blackburn 56

Location: Carlinville, Ill.

Records: Fontbonne (10-8; 9-2 SLIAC), Blackburn (4-13; 2-9 SLIAC)

How It Happened

In the first quarter, a 3-pointer from Madison Boaz had the Griffins out in front 13-5 with just under four minutes remaining. The team maintained its lead the rest of the way in the final minutes to own a 16-9 advantage after one quarter of play.

In the second, the Beavers trailed by just 20-16 at the 7:23 mark on Maria Cline going 1-of-2 from the line. The Griffins, though answered quickly in less than one minute with a 5-0 run on a bucket from Kourtney White and a 3-pointer from Riley Guffey.

Blackburn continued to hang around as Jenna Dudra made her jumper with 3:46 on the clock to make it a 25-23 contest. However, another quick 4-0 run gave Fontbonne some breathing room as Raven Venegas made both free throws to extend the lead out to 29-23.

On the ensuing possession, the Beavers got a 3-pointer from Dudra to trim it down to 29-26 at the break. After shooting just 30.3 percent in the first quarter, the Beavers got hot from the field going 6-of-11 (54.5 percent), while Fontbonne was limited to a 28.6 field goal percentage in the second quarter.

In the third, the Griffins offense took over as they outscored Blackburn, 36-7. After Savannah Kruse made her jumper to open the third, the Griffins rattled off a 10-0 run as White earned the old-fashioned 3-point play to give them a commanding 39-28 lead with 6:52 on the clock.

At 4:45, the Beavers got a basket from Callista Franics to make it a 47-33 deficit. It was all Fontbonne the rest of the way with the team closing out on an 18-0 run to lead 65-33 heading into the fourth.

Offensively, the Griffins shot 59.1 percent from the field in the third and forced nine Beaver turnovers. Rylee Stafford led with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting in the third.

In the fourth, both teams shot over 50.0 percent from the floor and Blackburn outscored Fontbonne 23-15 in the frame, however, the Griffins never let its lead get under 20 as they went on for the 24-point win.

Inside The Numbers

• The Griffins shot 46.0 percent from the floor and owned a 36-28 advantage on the glass.
• The team dominated in the paint outscoring Blackburn, 38-20.
• Fontbonne bench also outscored Blackburn, 26-10.
• The Beavers ended the night shooting 39.1 percent from the floor.
• The 36 third quarter points are a new season-high for Fontbonne. The previous mark was 34 in the fourth quarter against Westminster.

Fontbonne Leaders

• Raven Venegas recorded her second double-double on the season and sixth collegiate double-double with a team-high 14 points and 10 rebounds.
• White finished with 13 points, while Stafford and Jillian Venegas tied with 11 points each.

Blackburn Leaders

• Savannah Kruse led the floor with a game-high 22 points.
• Both Dudra and Francis contributed 10 points each.

Up Next

As we make the turn towards the final month of the regular season the Griffins stand in second place. On Saturday, they'll head on the road in search of sweeping the season series against Greenville who stands in third. Tip-off at 1 p.m.

Fans make sure to stay updated on fontbonnegriffins.com throughout the year for full updates and recaps on the women's basketball team.

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