FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The No. 9-ranked Indiana Tech women's basketball team defeated No. 15-ranked and crosstown rival University of Saint Francis (Ind.), 75-68, on Saturday afternoon inside the Hutzell Athletic Center to extend their winning streak to seven games.
 
Kendall Knapke and Alexis Hill each scored a team-high 14 points with the latter collecting five rebounds. Rachel Bell added 13 points and three steals while Jenna Szostak chipped in 13 points and three rebounds off the bench. DeAnn Kauffman had 12 points and three rebounds.
 
The Cougars used a 10-0 run to get out to a 15-4 lead over the Warriors in the opening six minutes of the game. Saint Francis grew their lead up to 15 points before the Orange and Black closed the quarter on a 10-1 spurt to make it a 22-16 game.
 
Back-to-back baskets from the hosts put the deficit back into double digits for Tech, but a 10-0 run from the Warriors closed the gap to a 30-29 lead for USF with 2:04 to play in the half. The Cougars would take a 35-30 lead into the locker room following a 5-1 run to end the quarter.
 
Saint Francis grew the lead back into double digits just two minutes into the third quarter following a 6-1 run to make it a 41-31 lead. Back-to-back baskets from Kauffman, a triple from Szostak and a jumper from Bell quickly erased the deficit to just a single point at 41-40 with 6:24 on the clock. The Cougars continued to maintain their lead through the rest of the quarter, growing the lead back up to six points but the Warriors played tough to keep the deficit to just two possessions.
 
The visitors began the fourth quarter on a 9-3 run with a three from Kauffman capping the run and give Tech their first lead of the game at 61-59 with 6:10 to play. The Warriors ratcheted up the defensive intensity in the final period of the game as they held USF to just 3-13 (23.1%) shooting from the floor in the final 10 minutes of play, but the Cougars clawed their way back to a hold a 68-64 lead with 2:19 on the clock.
 
A jumper from Bell started an 11-0 for Tech to close out the game though and give the Warriors their third straight win over their crosstown rivals. Bella Lozano-Dobbs tied the game up at 68 with 1:31 to play while a three-pointer from Szostak put the Orange and Black up for good with 46 seconds on the clock. Tech's defense stifled USF over the last two minutes as the Cougars missed all four of their shot attempts.
 
Tech (8-1) returns to action Wednesday as they travel to Lourdes University for a Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) matchup. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. from the Ebeid Recreation Center.