KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - The William Jewell women's basketball team mounted an 18-point second half rally on Saturday afternoon, as Kate Hillyer got a layup with 12 second left to defeat Truman, 70-69. The Cardinals close the season on a three-game winning streak and finish 8-18 overall and 6-14 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.  

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The two teams went back-and-forth in the early going as Truman got a block and bucket to go in front 20-18 after the first quarter. 
• With the Cardinals trailing by just two late midway through the second quarter, Truman closed the half on a 9-2 run to open up a 35-26 lead at the break. 
• The Bulldogs came out of the locker room and expanded their advantage to a 18 with 5:33 to go in the third quarter. Over the final five minutes of the period the Cardinals chipped away, led by eight points from Caitlin to close the gap to just five points, 53-48, heading to the final quarter. 
• Hillyer hit two free throws to tie the game at 57-all with just under seven minutes to go but the Bulldogs got a late three-point play to go back on top by five, late. Trailing 67-62 with less than two minutes to play, the Cardinals got back-to-back threes from Kirsten Hauck to pull within one. Hauck pulled down a defensive rebound with 24 seconds remaining to give the visitors a final shot. With 10 seconds remaining slid around two defenders to score and give the Cardinals the victory.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Hillyer and Behling led all scorers with 19 points a piece while Hauck added 17 and Ayden Shannon 11. 
• Behling pulled down a team high eight rebounds while Bree Shannon had three assists and Hillyer, three steals. 
• Jewell shot 45% from the floor and was 16-of-18 from the free throw line. 
• The Cardinals outscored Truman in the paint, 30-20, and defeated the Bulldogs for the first time since 2019. 

UP NEXT
Jewell will lose two players to graduation in Hillyer and Karlee Holland with 10 players set to return in 2025-2026.