SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - The William Jewell women's basketball team used a big second half to push past Illinois Springfield on Saturday afternoon by a final of 71-61. The win moves the Cardinals to 9-9 on the season and more importantly up to No. 7 in the latest GLVC Point Rating System standings. The top eight teams in the PRS advance to the postseason tournament. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Jewell got off to a little bit of a sluggish start, falling behind by eight early in the second period before a Claire Burch jumper ignited a rally that would eventually tie the game at 31. The Stars got two free throws just before the half to hold a two-point advantage at the intermission, 35-33. 
• The third quarter was all Cardinals as they held UIS to just 18% from the floor (3-of-17). After tying the game at 40 on a three by Kiara Bradley, Jewell took their first lead of the day on a bucket from Kalli Murphy and never looked back. 
• The Cardinals outscored their counterparts, 24-17 in the fourth quarter, taking their largest lead of the day at 11 after two free throws from Sydney Offield with just under 90 seconds to play. The redshirt senior, Offield, iced the game by hitting 7-of-8 free throws over the final 1:27. 

FOR THE CARDINALS

• Offield was impressive on the day, posting a double-double of 16 points and a game-high 11 rebounds to go along with five assists and two steals. 
• Bradley led Jewell with 22 points while also adding eight boards while Claire Burch chipped in 10 points. 
• Jewell dominated the paint, 26-18, and were the beneficiaries of 14 UIS turnovers leading to 20 fast break points. 

FOR THE PRAIRIE STARS

• The Stars got 17 points from Lauren Ladowski while Malea Jackson added 10. 
• MeKenna Fee finished with a team-high 10 rebounds. 
• UIS shot just 29% on the day, the second-lowest for a Jewell opponent this season. 

UP NEXT
The Cardinals are scheduled to host a makeup game with Lindenwood on Tuesday followed a visit from Quincy on Thursday.