William Penn Wrap Up Perfect League Slate

William Penn University Athletics

Des Moines–The Statesmen cagers concluded their best regular season in program history with a 74-62 victory over Grand View in Midwest Collegiate Conference play Saturday.

With the win, #1 William Penn (28-1, 12-0 MCC) recorded its first-ever undefeated league season and also matched the school record for wins (2007-2008). The visitors will now be off until next Saturday’s MCC Tournament semifinals.

Grand View (11-14, 4-8 MCC) scored the game’s first two points, but the Statesmen rallied with 14 unanswered and never led by less than nine points again. The advantage was as high as 26 in the first half and 22 in the second, but the Vikings went on a mini run to close out the afternoon.

William Penn outshot its host 42.6% 40.7% and held a 40-31 edge on the glass which led to a 13-6 WPU margin in second-chance points. Both teams committed 12 turnovers.

Kevin Fay (Jr., Hennepin, Ill., Education) hit five three-pointers, all in less than three minutes in the first half, en route to a game-best 22 points off the bench. The Statesmen, who finished with 12 trifectas, limited Grand View to only four shots from beyond the arc.

“Kevin was so hot that I told our team not to touch him,” Statesmen Head Coach John Henry said.

Brandon Beasley (Sr., Indianapolis, Ind., Physical Education) posted double-double #12 with 19 points and 13 rebounds. He also assisted on six baskets and stole four balls.

Keith Steffeck (Sr., Marion, Iowa, Physical Education) reached double figures as well with 14 points, while James Devlin (Sr., Tampa, Fla., Sociology) just missed the mark with nine points. Steffeck had both of his team’s two blocks. Taylor Stoutner (Sr., Keota, Iowa, Physical Education) added six points in the victory.

“We had a lot of fans here today and we appreciate all the support,” Henry said. “Before the season I knew we would be good, but I never dreamed of going undefeated in the conference, being 28-1, and being ranked #1 in the nation.”