SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - A 12-2 run late in the second half pushed the McKendree Bearcats to a 70-61 victory against the University of Illinois Springfield women's basketball team Monday evening at the Recreation and Athletic Center.

With the score 49-46 at the 12:04 minute-mark in favor of the Prairie Stars, the visiting Bearcats took control of the game with a 12-2 run. Makeba Elliott's (Chicago, Ill.) 3-pointer with 1:42 to play got the hosts to 61-59. McKendree sealed its first GLVC win of the season at the free throw line.

"We kind of went into a lull where we didn't have the right movement," Oletzke said. "We made a lot of defensive mistakes and gave them a lot of second-chance opportunities."

UIS (5-10, 1-6 GLVC) got off to a good start, but their top three scorers, guard Jameeshia Armstrong, guard Shelbi Patterson (Indianapolis) and forward Syerra Cunningham, ran into foul trouble in the opening half. Despite fouls and turnovers, UIS managed a 29-19 lead just over four minutes before halftime. A 12-4 run pulled McKendree within 33-31 at the break.

"We were doing the things we kind of wanted to do in the first half," UIS coach Chad Oletzke said. "We had good player movement. We got on a nice run. Defensively we were playing well and getting stops." The Stars never trailed in the first half.

"In the second half we talked about player movement and ball movement, we just never got it," Oletzke said. "I felt like we forced things too early in possessions too many times."

Guard Courtney Knuckles (Poplar Bluff, Mo.) scored a team-high 20 points for UIS. Patterson followed with 12 points.

Danielle Amann-Stewart topped the team with 20 points, while guard Caty Ponce had 16 points.

The Prairie Stars now look to the road to find their next victory. UIS faces Saint Joseph's on Thursday in Renssalear, Ind. for a 5:30 p.m. tip.