By DON O'BRIEN
Herald-Whig Sports Editor
They've played more minutes than anyone else on the Quincy University women's basketball team. So it's rare for both Jessica Keller and Whintae Irby to be off the floor at the same time.
Yet, when they weren't playing Thursday night, the Lady Hawks struggled against Rockhurst. When Keller and Irby tried to catch a break in the Great Lakes Valley Conference game, Rockhurst stormed back each time.
Despite never being able to shake the GLVC West Division's last-place team, QU went on to capture a 77-72 victory at Pepsi Arena.
"Coach told us this was a trap game," Keller said. "It's tough when you're looking forward to the No. 5 team in the nation (Drury) coming in next. We tried to stay focused and take it one game at a time."
The win sets up QU for a battle with Drury, the GLVC's best team and the No. 1 team in the Great Lakes Region. The Lady Hawks will have a chance to improve their NCAA Tournament resume after checking in at No. 6 in this week's region poll. The top eight teams will qualify for the NCAAs.
The Lady Hawks (18-8, 13-5 GLVC) led 38-32 at the half and pushed that lead to 15 points a few minutes into the second half thanks to a strong start.
A bucket by Michaela Young with 12 minutes, 44 seconds left pushed QU's lead to 58-43. It was around that time that Keller and Irby each took a break.
And just like in the first half when the pair rested, Rockhurst fought back.
Rockhurst (8-18, 3-15 GLVC) rattled off 10 points -- six by center Ana Novicic and four by forward Megan Hurley -- to cut the QU lead to 58-53 with 9:12 left.
Keller and Irby came back in at the end of the run and helped Quincy rebuild its lead to as big as 12 points down the stretch, but Rockhurst just wouldn't go away.
Twice, Rockhurst cut the QU lead to three in the final minute.
The Lady Hawks needed two free throws by Alex Roznowski with 33 seconds left and two by Keller with 18.1 seconds left to put the finishing touches on the win.
Rockhurst made things interesting in the first half by rattling off 10 straight points thanks to a pair of 3-pointers and two buckets by 6-foot-3 center Rachel Webster, the second cutting QU's lead to 33-30 with 3:20 left in the half.
QU took a 38-32 halftime lead thanks to 3-pointer by Roznowski with three seconds left in the half.
"We kind of expected this," QU coach JD Gravina said. "As much as you preach about focusing on tonight, it's just human nature to overlook the game.
"I don't think there's anything we can do about it. I don't think we played horrible, but we did shoot horribly."
The Lady Hawks shot just 39.4 percent from the field (28 of 71) and struggled mightily from behind the 3-point arc, making just 21.1 percent (4 for 19).
Keller was a steadying influence on offense. She finished with 24 points as part of another solid all-around game. She added seven steals, five rebounds and five assists. Lindsey Stellflue was the only other Lady Hawk in double figures with 11 points. Irby had nine points and four assists, while Roznowski and Courtney Shuman added eight points each.
Former Scotland County star Ali Fromm sparked the Rockhurst offense. She finished with a team-high 18 points thanks to four 3-pointers. Novicic added 14 points, while Chelsea Barnett and Hurley added 10 each for Rockhurst.
QU will wrap up its regular season on Saturday with a 1 p.m. game against Drury at Pepsi Arena.
The Panthers, who have wrapped home-court advantage for the entire GLVC Tournament, improved to 16-2 in the GLVC and 24-2 overall Thursday with a 94-64 victory at SIU-Edwardsville.
-- dobrien@whig.com/221-3365
