GRINNELL – Grinnell made a living from the foul line in the second half and pulled away from the Rams late, 69-49, in a matchup of Midwest Conference women's basketball postseason hopefuls Wednesday night at Darby Gymnasium.
 
The host Pioneers (14-7 overall, 8-4 MWC) sank 25-of-27 free throws for the night, including a 17-of-18 touch in the fourth quarter that played a major factor in the outcome. Cornell (11-8 overall, 7-4 MWC) attempted only five free throws in the game, and misfired on all of them.
 
Cornell's second road loss in conference play moved the Rams into a tie with Knox for fourth place in the MWC race. Grinnell, which lost 54-53 to Cornell in December, jumped to third place.
 
Cornell battled its in-state rival to a 23-23 tie at halftime, thanks to a 10-point half from junior Rylee VanDresar, who shot 4-of-4 from the floor with a pair of 3-pointers.
 
The Rams closed within 45-41 early in the fourth quarter on a 3-pointer by Tenley Cavanagh. But Grinnell wound up outscoring Cornell, 24-11, in the final period and put the game away with a 13-0 game-ending run.
 
Freshman Erin Knowles paced the Rams with 13 points, five rebounds and three steals. Cavanagh provided nine points off the bench. Reagan Wells and Heidi Jorgensen had seven points apiece.
 
The Pioneers were led by Sara Booher's 21 points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots.
 
Coming up – Cornell plays host to Beloit (2-19 overall, 1-11 MWC) at 1 p.m. Saturday. The Rams won the first meeting, 53-41.