North Central led the Titans by as many as 15 early in the second half, following a jumper by Barbara Williams (Skokie/Niles West) and a three by Katie Knapczyk (Plainfield/Plainfield).
Wesleyan slowly chipped away at the deficit thanks largely to the play of Heidi Harnisch. Harnisch finished the night as the game’s leading scorer with 26 points.
The Titans tied the score at 52 with 10:11 remaining on the clock and took a small lead, before the Cardinals recaptured the advantage minutes later. Following two made free throws by Danielle Tinkoff (Barrington/Barrington), North Central led by five with just over four minutes to play.
Wesleyan regained their lead, 64-61, at the 2:55 mark after a four-point-play by Hannah MeHarry. The Titans were able to stay ahead down the stretch by going 13-for-13 from the charity stripe in the final three minutes.
North Central held a 36-26 at the half after going on a 10-2 run midway through the period. The Cardinals hit two three-pointers during the streak, one each by Knapczyk and Shay Green (Hoffman Estates/Schaumburg). The team shot nearly 62 percent in the period, including 3-for-3 from behind the line.
Williams and Tinkoff were the top Cardinal scorers on the night with 13 points each. Williams was 5-for-5 from the field, while Tinkoff hit 5-of-7 and grabbed five rebounds. Green chipped in 12 points and five assists for North Central.
The loss Tuesday puts the Cardinals in a tie for fourth place with Elmhurst College in the CCIW standings. The two teams meet Saturday, February 19th at 2 p.m. in Elmhurst. The top four teams in the league advance to the conference tournament. North Central won its last meeting with Elmhurst, 65-54, in Naperville.
IWU 26 53 -79 NCC 36 31 -67