KANSAS CITY, Kan. – A tough battle took place inside the KCKCC Fieldhouse Friday night as the No. 5 Kansas City Kansas Community College women's basketball team took on No. 6 Illinois Central College. The Blue Devils had to settle the score in overtime as they were able to hang on 84-79 and move to 7-0 on the season.
Illinois Central fell to 2-4 on the season.
In the first quarter, it was a dog fight as both teams traded punches. KCKCC led 12-10 before Illinois Central grabbed the lead at 13-12 with 3:25 to play. Ikia Elam would make a layup with 1:10 remaining in the quarter and the Blue Devils held a 14-13 after one period. Both teams were unable to connect on shots in the second quarter as the teams were tied at 20-20 with 4:51 left. Illinois Central would manage to close out the quarter on a 15-5 run and took a 35-25 lead at halftime.
KCKCC would sprint out of the gate in the third quarter, scoring 10 unanswered points as Tiaira Earnest and Lacy Whitcomb combined for eight of the 10 points. The Cougars would grab the lead on three separate occasions however in the period, before taking a 49-44 lead into the fourth quarter. De'Jaria Guillroy would make things close again with five straight points – trimming the Blue Devil deficit to one point at 52-51 with 6:36 to play. KCKCC later took a 67-62 lead with 50 seconds left as it looked as if the game would be done from there. But Illinois Central managed to make a small run and would send the game to overtime with the score tied 69-69.
Both teams worked their way to a 74-74 tie 1:15 into the extra period, but the momentum quickly shifted the Blue Devils way. Earnest was able to knock down two quick three-pointers to make it 80-74 with 3:01 left. The Cougars would manage to trim the deficit to three points at 82-79, but the Blue Devils sank two free throws down the stretch to close the game out.
Earnest led the team with 28 points, while Guillroy had 18 points and Aysia Arrowood had 16. Whitcomb notched a double-double with 12 points and 10 assists.
KCKCC will return to action Saturday with a home game against Iowa Western Community College at 2 p.m.
