EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (blugolds.com) — The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire women's basketball team used a huge third quarter to rally past UW-La Crosse 68-56 on Saturday at Zorn Arena. The Blugolds outscored the Eagles 22-7 in the third to pull away for a second consecutive WIAC victory.
The 12th-ranked Blugolds trailed 31-29 at halftime, but closed the third quarter on a 16-3 run to build a 13-point lead. The surge was enough to push UW-Eau Claire to a fourth straight win.
"I thought Bailey Reardon (Sr. - River Falls, Wis.) came off the bench for us today and did a lot of really good things, and we just rode that lineup especially because they clicked," Blugolds coach Tonja Englund said. "It's the benefit of having a really experienced group. Obviously I have a lot of seniors that have NCAA Tournament experience, and even if it's a tight game, for the most part we're going to keep on making our substitutions and just going until we get that group that clicks. I also thought that our press caused them some problems, and just again, I think our conditioning down the stretch is a difference maker."
UW-Eau Claire rode a double-double from Tyra Boettcher (Sr. - Menomonie, Wis.), who scored 17 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. It was her third double-double through nine games this season. Jessie Ruden (Sr. - Rochester, Minn./John Marshall) led all scorers with 18 points, and added six rebounds, five assists and three steals too.
The Blugolds opened the game by scoring 11 of the contest's first 15 points, but the Eagles battled back to tie the score at 15 by the end of the first quarter. UW-La Crosse took its first lead in the second quarter, and built it as high as six. However, Reardon made a pair of free throws and Courtney Crouch (Sr. - White Bear Lake, Minn.) made a jumper in the final two and a half minutes to cut the lead to two by halftime.
The Eagles scored four of the first six points in the second half, but it was all Blugolds from there. A layup by Ruden put the Blugolds ahead for good with 6:11 left in the period. Ruden had nine points in the third quarter, Boettcher scored eight and Reardon added five. The Blugolds kept up the pace in the fourth quarter to see out the victory, powered by eight points from Kylie Mogen (Sr. - Menomonie, Wis.).
Crouch scored 13 points and secured seven rebounds for UW-Eau Claire. Reardon had nine points and seven rebounds.
The Blugolds (8-1, 2-0) return to non-conference play for the rest of the calendar year. They visit Bethany Lutheran on Tuesday, Dec. 6, at 7 p.m.
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