ELSAH, Ill. – The 25^th ranked Webster University women's basketball team was back in action this afternoon when they traveled to Elsah, Illinois, to take on the Principia (Ill.) College Panthers for a SLIAC matchup. The Gorloks defeated the Panthers by a final score of 73-50 to improve to 21-0 on the season and 14-0 in conference play. With the loss, Principia drops to 12-9 on the season and 9-5 in conference play.

With the win today, the Gorloks have clinched the top seed in the SLIAC Women's Basketball Tournament and at least a share of the SLIAC Regular Season Title. This marks the Gorloks fifth straight season to earn the top seed in the tournament.

The Gorloks went 25-for-59 (42.4%) from the floor and 6-for-21 (28.6%) from behind the arc. They were outrebounded by a final count of 33-28 with nine rebounds coming on the offensive end. Webster forced the Panthers to turn the ball over 31 times in the game while turning those turnovers into 32 points on the other end of the floor. The Gorloks also went 17-for-19 (89.5%) from the free throw line while dishing out 13 assists.

Webster came out in the first half and got off to a great start as they jumped out to a 9-1 lead in the first five minutes of the contest. The Panthers would cut the lead to three over the next few minutes, but a 10-1 run from the Gorloks to end the quarter would put them up 19-7 heading into the second. Webster continued to play well in the second and grew their lead to 18 with just under eight minutes to play in the half. They played tough defense down the final stretch of the half and outscored the Panthers 11-4 in the final minutes to take a 40-15 lead into the locker room.

The Panthers picked it up in the second half and would outscore the Gorloks 19-17 in the third quarter to cut Websters lead to 23 heading into the fourth. Webster would push their lead out to as many as 28 in the final frame and cruised to their 21^st win to start the season.

Julie Baudendistel led the way for Webster as she finished with a game high 17 points. Emily Wilson also finished in double figures as she finished with 15 points. In addition, Bethany Lancaster finished with a team high five rebounds while Jordyn Grimes and Grace Hupp each added eight points.

The Gorloks will return to the court on Wednesday, February 7^th when they host the Blackburn (Ill.) College Beavers for a SLIAC matchup. The game is set to start at 5:30 p.m. in Grant Gymnasium.