McKendree women stun Bethel University in season opener

Wildcats were ranked No. 20 in the country

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McKENZIE, Tenn. -- The McKendree University women's basketball team opened its 2009-10 season in dramatic fashion on road Monday night and upset No. 20 Bethel (Tenn.) University 75-73.

McKendree, now 1-0 overall, will have its home opener this Saturday against No. 7 Saint Xavier University. Tipoff for the tilt is at 7 p.m.

Junior guard Ashley Agee led all players with 25 points on the night and junior guard Katie Fullerton (Coulterville) had 16 points and seven rebounds. Senior guard Haley Klingelhoefer (Mascoutah) also contributed 11 points in the win.

The Bearcats jumped out to a 5-3 lead one minute into the contest, but the Wildcats went on a 15-7 run over the next four minutes to build a 17-12 lead over visiting McKendree. Consecutive jumper's by Fullerton and freshman forward Shelby Woelfel (Jerseyville) cut the deficit to 17-16 with 13:30 remaining in the first half.

Three turnovers led to 10-0 run by Bethel and following a timeout by McKendree, Agee cut the Wildcat lead back to single digits, 27-18, with 8:49 remaining in the first half. The Bearcats tied the game with under a minute to play in the first half on a jumper by Fullerton and the ensuing free throw briefly gave McKendree a one-point lead, 36-35.

The Wildcats would get fouled on their next trip down the floor and made two free throws with 37-seconds remaining in the half to head into the break with a 37-36 lead.

Bethel immediately took control in the second half and led 42-36 after only one minute of play, but consecutive three-pointers by Klingelhoefer and Agee tied the game 44-44 with 15:49 to play in the second half.

The Bearcats led by as many as nine in the remainder of the second half and held off the surging Wildcats down the stretch to pull off the 75-73 upset victory.

Nina Djokovic and Teena Carter had 25 and 24 points, respectively, for the Wildcats and both also had seven rebounds. Anna Trull also scored 10 points in the losing effort.

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