Kali March delivered all of her season-high 18 points in the second half, guiding the Rams to a 57-51 comeback win over Lawrence in Midwest Conference women’s basketball action Saturday inside the Small Athletic and Wellness Center.
Cornell stayed even with Ripon for second place in the MWC race, one-half game behind Knox.
March came off the bench to provide a stellar all-around performance, posting six steals, six rebounds and four assists in 28 minutes. The junior guard canned three 3-pointers and hit 9-of-12 free throws.
Madison Wauters scored 16 points and Megan Gandrup 14 for the Rams, who overcame a 53-35 rebounding deficit. Cornell forced 21 turnovers and held the Vikings to 29.0-percent shooting from the field.
Gandrup’s fourth 3-pointer of the contest gave Cornell its biggest lead at 48-41 with 5:25 remaining. Lawrence charged back and forged ahead 50-49 with less than one minute to play.
March fed Madison Osborn for a go-ahead 3-pointer with 38 seconds left. March then iced the game from the foul line, sinking 5-of-6 free throws in the waning moments.
March, who ranks No. 6 nationally in steals per game (4.15), topped the century mark for steals in a career with 101.
Wauters and Gandrup had six rebounds apiece, while Mia Murray added five off the bench. Osborn collected three steals.
Earlier in the week, the Rams picked up a 72-45 loss to Knox.
The Rams raced to a 10-point lead after one quarter, although were limited to five made field goals the rest of the way as Knox (10-4 overall, 5-0 MWC) climbed into sole possession atop the league standings.
Playing without starting forward Ani’ja Simmons due to injury, Cornell stepped up to the challenge early against the MWC’s top scoring offense. The Rams shot 64.3 percent in the first quarter, capped by a Kali March 3-pointer that pushed Cornell ahead 23-13 through 10 minutes.
March finished with a game-high 15 points and went 5-of-5 from the foul line. She added two steals, giving her 54 on the season, most in the MWC.
The Prairie Fire came back to take a 32-30 lead at halftime and didn’t trail the rest of the game. Knox hit five 3-pointers in the second half and finished a hot 9-of-19 from long range against Cornell’s top-ranked scoring defense in the MWC.
Madison Wauters collected 12 points and six rebounds for the Rams, whose 21 turnovers led to 30 points for the Prairie Fire. Megan Gandrup added nine points, connecting on three 3-point goals.
The Rams converted 11-of-13 free throws. They entered the contest ranked No. 7 nationally in free throw percentage (76.4).
Kristin Herndon paced Knox with 12 points and 12 rebounds.