Lady Railers fall to Morton 54-45

[January 24, 2022] Lincoln, ranked no. 6 in the AP Class 3A poll, took on the no. 2 ranked Morton Lady Potters on Saturday afternoon in the Downstate Classic in Galesburg. 

After falling behind in the first quarter 8-2, Lincoln fought back to tie the game 8-8. With Morton taking an 11-8 lead on a three, Lincoln’s Kloe Froebe answered with a three to tie the game again. Becca Heitzig would put the Lady Railers in front 13-11 on a baseline jumper, but by the end of the quarter Morton was back on top 18-13. 

The game quickly escalated in the second quarter with Morton taking a 27-15 lead. Lincoln’s shots were not falling in the second quarter and the Lady Potters took a 31-17 lead at the half.

The Lady Railers would pull to within six points mid-way through the third quarter, 38-32 the score. The quarter ended with Lincoln down 42-34. 

Again the Lady Railers had an uphill battle on their hands in the fourth quarter and there was some hope as Lincoln made it a 50-45 ballgame, with under a minute to play. Foul trouble seemed to plague Lincoln throughout the game, and being forced to foul at the end was no great help against this perennial powerhouse of a girls basketball team. (Morton has won four of the last six Class 3A state championships. There’s even a book about the Lady Potters, their amazing seasons and their domination in the girls IHSA state basketball tournaments, written by the wonderful journalist, Dave Kindred). 

At any rate, a 4-for-4 shooting performance from the free throw line in the final seconds allowed the Lady Potters to win 54-45. 

Kloe Froebe led Lincoln with 20 points.

Katie Krupa led Morton with 24 points.

Lincoln falls to 17-5 with the loss to Morton.

Morton improved to 19-3 on the season.  

Lincoln 45

Froebe 20

Heitzig 6

McCuan 6

R. Stoltzenburg 6

Bowman 4

Robbins 3

Morton 54

Krupa 24

Lamprecht 14

Hobson 10

Hutchinson 6

[Teena Lowery]