Coe denies Simpson outright conference title

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – A 22-5 run to start the second half powered Coe to a 62-55 win Saturday afternoon at Eby Fieldhouse, denying No. 24 Simpson the outright Iowa Conference title.

Kayla Waskow scored a game-high 18 points for the Kohawks (16-7, 11-3 IIAC), who handed Simpson its second-straight loss.

With the win, Coe moves within a half game of the Storm (19-5, 12-3). Due to a postponed game earlier in the season, Coe has two conference games remaining while Simpson has one.

Needing a win to win the regular season conference title entering the day, Simpson now needs a win against Dubuque next Saturday and a Coe loss to wrap up an outright conference title.

Katie Kitzman (Gillman, Iowa/East Marshall) led Simpson with 16 points, followed by Jeni Hegstrom (Perry, Iowa/Perry) with 12. Ali Sokol (Urbandale, Iowa/Urbandale) pulled down a career-high 11 rebounds.

In a physical game, Simpson's leading scorer Stacey Schutjer (Titonka, Iowa/Woden-Crystal Lake-Titonka) fouled out with 8:38 remaining in the second half. The Coe defense held her to two points in 12 minutes of play.

With Simpson leading 27-20 at the half, Coe opened the second half with a 22-5 spurt, resulting in a 42-32 lead with 12:25 remaining.

The Storm pulled within two on a pair of Jenny McElree (Altoona, Iowa/Southeast Polk) free throws at the five-minute mark, and came within a bucket again less than a minute later on Hegstrom free throw.

But Simpson couldn't get any closer as Coe pulled away down the stretch.

The Storm closes the regular season against Dubuque Saturday, Feb. 20 in a 2 p.m. tipoff in Dubuque. A win ensures Simpson at least a share of the IIAC title.