Tiffin University (1-0) staged a second-half comeback to defeat Illinois-Springfield in its season opener 70-63.
The game was close early, with UIS putting together a run late in the second quarter to take a 33-27 lead into halftime.
With UIS leading by 8 points midway through the third quarter, the Dragons went on a 7-0 run that brought them to within a point 38-37. A three-pointer by
Riley Irwin capped a subsequent 5-0 run that saw the Dragons jump ahead by 4 points 44-40 but Illinois-Springfield managed to retake the lead by two points at the end of the third quarter.
The game remained close until the 3:49 mark of the final quarter when Tiffin went on a 7-2 run that put them ahead 65-60 with 2:50 to play. After UIS cut the lead to two points with 2:03 left,
Megan Campbell hit a big three-pointer to push the lead to 5 with 1:04 to play. Tiffin hit free throws inside the final minute to preserve the win.
Overall Tiffin shot 61 percent in the final quarter including 3-for-4 from three-point land to pull out the win. For the game they outshot UIS 44-31 percent.
Campbell led the Dragons with 16 points and 10 rebounds along with 5 assists while
Mahya Lindesmith had 12 points on 4 treys.
Grace Craig added 11 points and 8 rebounds, and
Isabelle Niederst reached double figures with 10 points.
Lyv Lindeman also had 9 points with 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
The Dragons now take on Purdue Northwest at 4 pm Nov. 9.
