The University of Illinois Springfield women's basketball team won another home game in close fashion. The Prairie Stars defeated Maryville on Saturday afternoon at TRAC by a 58-55 score.
 
UIS jumped out to an early lead, and had a 13-point advantage late in the first half. The Prairie Stars would go on and lead by a 31-24 margin at halftime.
 
Maryville came out strong in the third quarter, taking three one-point leads in the period, including a 44-43 margin heading into the final quarter.
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In the fourth, UIS won the game with its defensive effort. The Prairie Stars allowed just 11 points, holding Maryville to 3-13 shooting, and forcing five turnovers. The game was tied for the final time at 49 when Malea Jackson got open for a three-pointer with 6:17 remaining. Maryville cut that lead to one in the final minute, but UIS forced two missed shots in the final 15 seconds to clinch the win.
 
UIS shot 41.5 percent from the field for the game. Defensively, it held Maryville to 38 percent shooting, including just 17.6 percent from three-point range. UIS had a 39-27 advantage on the boards
 
Jackson finished with 18 points, including making four-of-six from behind the arc. Lauren Ladowski had 11 points, followed by Ellie Mitchell and Grace Weber with nine apiece. Makenna Fee had nine rebounds, and Mitchell pulled down seven boards. Fee also had a team-high four assists, and Ladowski was the team leader with three steals.
 
UIS is now 2-1 on the season. The Prairie Stars are off until next Saturday when they host Lewis at 1 p.m. at TRAC.