William Penn Knocks Off Rival Vikings 78-66
William Penn University Athletics
Oskaloosa–Sarah Hansen (Jr., Neponset, Ill., Psychology and Human Services) and the William Penn women’s basketball team started slowly, but paced by a smothering defense, the Statesmen utilized a couple of huge spurts to defeat Grand View 78-66 in Heart of America Athletic Conference action Tuesday.
WPU (4-3, 3-1 Heart) returned to the winner’s circle by turning 27 Viking mistakes into 34 points. The squad was outshot 44.4%-37.1% overall, but performed well both beyond the arc at 41.9% and at the line at 76.5%.
The win extends the recent success the Statesmen have had against GVU. William Penn, which had lost 18 of 21 games against the Vikings at one point, has now claimed three straight in the series.
The hosts fell behind GVU (3-3, 2-2 Heart) early, but battled to take a 16-15 advantage after 10 minutes of play. The score seesawed in the opening minutes of the second period, but a bucket by Alyssa Phillips (Sr., Gurnee, Ill., Communications) gave the Statesmen the lead for good at 29-27. Phillips was unfortunately not much of a factor on the offense end, scoring just those two lone points; the senior did manage two blocks and three steals on the defensive side though.
Her shot started what would stand as the difference-making run as William Penn scored the final 11 points of the half to lead 38-27. WPU added the first seven points of the third quarter as well.
Sarah Hansen (Jr., Neponset, Ill., Psychology and Human Services) stepped up in Phillips’ absence. She was held scoreless in the first period and only tallied five points in the second quarter, but once she caught fire, little stopped her in recording a game-high 28 points on 10-for-19 shooting (five three-pointers).
The Vikings cut the margin to 11 late in the third, but another big run (this one 11-0) put the contest out of reach. WPU, which was outrebounded 44-37, was actually better on the offensive glass (13-11) to claim a 13-11 edge in second-chance points. The victors did have some ball control issues as well with 18 turnovers of their own, but the 34-10 margin in points off turnovers was more than enough to headline the win.
Hansen had plenty of help Tuesday as Asia Roper (Sr., Aurora, Colo., Psychology) did a little of everything with 12 points, six assists, and four steals.
Kate Ylitalo (Fr., Maple Plain, Minn., Biology) guided the bench contribution with nine points, while Vashti Nwagbaraocha (So., Milwaukee, Wis., Exercise Science) finished with eight points and eight rebounds. Jessica Warren (Sr., Park Forest, Ill., Physical Education) added six points in the victory.
“This was a great way to get back on track,” Head Coach Willie Scott said. “I felt we were better tonight in our defensive assignments. We executed hard traps that forced turnovers and we made shots when it counted.”
“We also got a huge lift from our bench; they helped us finish the job,” Scott added. “I was glad to see Sarah get hot tonight.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Peru, Neb. next Monday to face Peru State in Heart action at 5:30 p.m.
