QUINCY, Ill. – Led by junior Jessie Rabas three-point shooting, the Quincy University women's basketball team defeated Missouri Valley College 82-72 Sunday (Dec. 31) afternoon.
Rabas knocked down five three-pointers, leading the Hawks with 17 points.
A defensive struggle in the first quarter saw the Hawks and Vikings tied at 6-6 with 4:54 remaining in the opening quarter.
The Hawks held a 13-11 lead at the end of the first 10 minutes of play.
QU knocked down six three-pointers in the second quarter, three coming from Rabas. The Hawks needed every point as Missouri Valley kept pace with the strong Hawks offensive attack.
The Hawks outscored the Vikings 28-24 in the second quarter in the offensive shootout.
Anika Webster got the Hawks started off quickly, making a basket and drawing a foul to put the Hawks up 44-35 in the first minute of the second half.
The Hawks pushed their lead to eight with 4:28 remaining in the third quarter after a three-pointer by guard Michaela Gronewold.
The Vikings cut the lead to just two after a 6-0 run. The Hawks responded with a 6-0 run of their own with 1:30 to play in the third quarter.
Missouri Valley brought the lead to four just before the start of the fourth quarter.
The Vikings tied the score at 61-61 with 8:35 remaining in the game.
The Hawks held a one-point lead with 4:14 to play in the fourth quarter.
QU made eight of nine free throws down the stretch to secure the 10 point win.
The Hawks scored 18 points off Viking turnovers to gain the advantage over Missouri Valley.
Webster added 16 points for QU, and freshman Julia Ruzevich scored 15 for the Hawks.
QU improves to 4-8 on the year and travels to Indianapolis on January 4th for the next GLVC matchup of the season.
