Women's basketball cruises past Illinois Tech

INDIANOLA, Iowa - Morgan Terpstra led four players in double figures with a career-high 17 points and the No. 22 Simpson women's basketball team cruised to a 94-28 win over Illinois Tech on the first day of the Simpson Classic on Friday evening.

Terpstra added four steals and went 8-for-11 from the field for the Storm (3-1), who responded nicely after a loss to Iowa Wesleyan on Tuesday night.

Simpson's defense was suffocating, forcing 39 turnovers and holding Illinois Wesleyan to just 17.3 percent shooting from the field.

Everyone with a jersey got into the game and 14 of 15 got in on the scoring. Brooke Panzer finished with 14 points, MacKenzie Haupt came off the bench to score 12 points and reserve guard Rachel Kaale added 10. Taryn Barz pulled down 10 rebounds and Bailey Myer dished out a team-high five assists.

Lauren Capuano did just about everything for the Scarlet Hawks (1-5), scoring 14 points and grabbing 16 rebounds. Illinois Tech reinstated its basketball teams in 2012-13 after the programs were discontinued following the 2008-09 season.

Panzer scored the first five points of the game on a layup and a three-point play as Simpson jumped out to a 24-2 lead in the first seven minutes.

Despite shooting just 2-for-12 from 3-point range, Simpson dominated the post, out-scoring Illinois Tech 70-12 in the paint. Forty of Simpson's points came off turnovers.

Simpson faces Grand View on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the final game of the tournament. Grand View beat Buena Vista in the day's first game, 84-60.