Lake Forest College Sports Information
November 26, 2006
Contact: Mike Wajerski, SID

Lake Forest Tops Pair of Ranked Team to Capture McWilliams Classic Title
Foresters knock off #12 Washington University and #17 Williams College

Lizzy Bauer Andrea Durante
LAKE FOREST, Ill. - The Forester women’s basketball team claimed the championship at Washington University’s McWilliams Classic over the weekend (November 25-26). Lake Forest defeated the hosts 83-81 in overtime in Saturday’s first round and won 75-63 over Williams College in Sunday’s title game. Washington was ranked 12th in the nation and Williams 17th in D3hoops.com’s preseason poll. The Foresters are 4-0 on the year, Washington fell to 1-3 with Saturday’s loss, and Williams is now 3-2.

Senior guard Lizzy Bauer (Madison, Wis./Madison West) led Lake Forest with 16 points on Saturday and shot 4-for-6 from three-point range. Senior guard/forward Andrea Durante (Bloomingdale, Ill./ Lake Park) was next on the squad with 15 points, sophomore forward Ashley Cretacci (Mundelein, Ill./Mundelein) scored 14, and junior center Nicole Baich (Westchester, Ill./Nazareth Academy) added 11. Baich and Cretacci also reached double figures with 11 and 10 rebounds, respectively, and freshman forward Claire Schmidt (Kankakee, Ill./Bishop McNamara) had 10 boards as well. Schmidt and senior guard Nicole Rivera (Chicago, Ill./Fenwick) led the team with three assists and two steals apiece.

Both teams scored as many as 10 consecutive points in the opening period and the score at halftime was 39-34 in favor of the Bears. Washington extended its lead to as many as 17 points (69-52) in the second half before a 19-4 Forester run pulled them to within two points with a minute left in regulation. After the Bears scored with 11 seconds left, Bauer hit a three-pointer with five seconds remaining. The home team made two free throws with three seconds on the clock, setting up a Rivera buzzer-beating shot from beyond half court to force overtime (Watch). Washington scored the first four points of the five-minute extra period but Lake Forest scored the last six for the victory.

Baich shot 9-for-13 from the field against Williams, led all players with 19 points, and pulled down a team-high eight rebounds. Bauer was next on the squad with 18 points and shot 4-for-6 from the floor and 10-for-12 from the line. Durante scored 17 and led the team with three assists and four steals.

The Foresters trailed Williams 15-6 before scoring 15 straight points to take the lead for good. Lake Forest led 38-27 at halftime and by no less than eight points during the entire second half.

After combining for 66 points on the weekend, Bauer and Durante were named to the McWilliams Classic All-Tournament team. Bauer was named the event’s Most Valuable Player.

Lake Forest will begin Midwest Conference play on the road next weekend (December 1-2). The Foresters will take on Lawrence University Friday at 5:30 p.m. and Beloit College Saturday at 2:00 p.m.

Watch Rivera's Buzzer-Beating Halfcourt Shot to Force OT on Saturday (5 MB)

Lake Forest - Washington Box Score
Lake Forest - Williams Box Score