Eureka Dumps Lincoln Christian at “Midnight Madness,” 74-40

EUREKA, Ill. – Eureka College senior guard Hayley Reneau (Washington, Ill./Washington H.S./Illinois Central) scored 23 of her game-high 29 points in the first half and sophomore guard Kennedy Dura (Edwards, Ill./Brimfield H.S.) collected nine of the Red Devils' 22 assists in a 74-40 non-conference rout of Lincoln Christian, Sunday morning at Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena. The game tipped off at 12 a.m. as part of EC's third annual "Midnight Madness" event.

Reneau drilled a 3 on Eureka's first possession of the game to set the tone for the Red Devils' largest margin of victory since Feb. 8 of last season. Eureka never trailed Sunday and led 27-11 after one quarter. The cushion swelled to 43-22 at intermission.

Eureka continued to add to its lead throughout the second half limited the Red Lions to nine points in both the third and fourth quarters. The hosts held a 63-31 advantage after 30 minutes and led by as many as 37 points when Lexi Dooley (Sutter, Ill./Warsaw H.S.) split a pair of free throws for a 70-33 advantage with 6:56 left in the game.

Reneau finished 12-for-21 from the field and made five 3-pointers Sunday. Samantha Sarnes (Havana, Ill./Havana H.S.) scored nine points off the bench. Dooley led EC with 10 rebounds and Sabrina Clay (Galesburg, Ill./Galesburg H.S./Carl Sandburg) finished the contest with four of EC's 13 steals. Dura's nine-assist effort increased her season total to a league-best 73. Eureka has won all 20 of its contests on record against the Red Lions since 1998.

Katie Dial scored 13 points and gathered 11 rebounds to lead LCU. The Red Lions shot just 22 percent from the floor (13-for-59) and nine percent (2-for-23) from 3-point range.

Following a pair of victories in an 11-hour window, Eureka will have nearly a full week to prepare for its return to St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action. The Red Devils will host Webster on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 1 p.m. at the Reagan Athletic Complex.