Iler's 26 Points Carry Eagles to First Win of the Season

By Jon Crossman

ANKENY, Iowa – A phenomenal performance from freshman Sarah Iler and an unrelenting second-half defense from the Eagles opened the gate to their first win of the season, as well as the first victory of the year in the Nettleton gym. The 27-point triumph over Oak Hills snapped their three-game losing streak, 84-57.

Iler led the Eagles through the first half with 16 of her 26 points, with nearly identical shooting in each quarter (3-7 FG and 1-2 3P) and perfect shooting on free throws. Faith had a flying 6-0 start off of well-timed steals and rebounds, keeping a comfortable lead for the majority of the half. The only exception in Faith's exceptional offense came at the start of the second quarter, going stone-cold with 0-10 in shooting for the first 6 minutes of the quarter. Iler caught fire and scored 9 of the Eagles 13 points in the remaining 3:38 to send Faith to halftime up 39-24.

Both teams heated up in the second half, with each shooting 42.1% from midrange and trading fast breaks on seemingly every possession in the third quarter. Going into the final 10 minutes of the game up 59-43, Faith used the bigger bench to their advantage, subbing in fresh players to outrun and outplay the tired Wolfpack defense. The Eagles' bench connected for 11 points overall, giving almost every player a point in the game and ending with the highest team effort in shooting so far in the season (43.8%).

The offense was led by Sarah Iler's career-high 26 points, followed by 16 points apiece from Rachel Kleczka and Makenna Laib. Defensive efforts were mostly carried by Kleczka's 13 rebounds and 4 blocks, while Alicia Smith facilitated strongly with her 8 assists.

With their first win secured, the Eagles hit the road on Monday for a late-afternoon game against Central Christian College of the Bible at 4 p.m.