William Penn Overcomes Slow Start to Beat MVC on Senior Day
William Penn University Athletics
Oskaloosa–The Statesmen women’s basketball team did not suffer a hangover from its big win earlier this week, rallying past Missouri Valley 58-51 on Senior Day in Heart of America Athletic Conference action Saturday.
With the win, WPU (18-12, 16-10 Heart) ended the regular season in a tie for fourth in the league with MidAmerica Nazarene and Clarke. MNU won the tiebreaker, though, to earn the #4 spot for next week’s Heart Tournament, while William Penn’s win over Benedictine helped it to the #5 seed. The Statesmen will travel to Olathe, Kan. Wednesday to face the Pioneers in the quarterfinals at 7 p.m.
Saturday’s win did not come easy as WPU failed to even get on the board through the first six-plus minutes. Fortunately, the Vikings (13-17, 9-17 Heart) were also having issues putting the ball in the net as they led just 12-6 after 10 minutes.
Both sides continued to struggle in the second period with MVC up 22-18 at halftime. The navy and gold, who were outshot 38.5%-37.7%, finally got things going offensively in the third quarter, eventually taking their first lead late in the period.
William Penn held a 38-37 advantage entering the final 10 minutes. The lead went back and forth in the first part of the fourth stanza until the hosts grabbed the edge for good at 48-46 on a basket by Alyssa Phillips (Sr., Gurnee, Ill., Communications). The shot ignited a 7-1 run by the Statesmen that helped them seal the win.
WPU took to the boards for the victory, outrebounding the Vikings 46-30 (18-7 offensive), which resulted in a 14-4 mark in second-chance points.
Neither team had much success from the line (19-for-31 combined) or the perimeter (4-for-33 combined).
If it was indeed the final home game of her career, Phillips made it a memorable outing. She paced WPU with a double-double of 15 points (6-for-8 FG) and 12 rebounds and was also a menace on defense with six blocked shots.
JeAnn Hiraldo (Jr., Frisco, Texas, Industrial Technology), with 11 points, and Keshunda Williams (Fr., Chicago, Ill., Business Management), with 10 points, also joined the double-digit club.
Williams and ShaVonn Watkins (Sr., Peoria, Ill., Physical Education) each managed three steals Saturday.
“This was a great way to end the regular season,” Head Coach John Henry said. “I knew it would be a tough game, coming off a huge upset and with Missouri Valley fighting for a postseason berth. They fought the entire time, but we were able to put together a few solid runs in the second half to get the win.”
“On behalf of our entire staff and players, we would like to thank our fans for their support throughout the regular season,” Scott added. “You guys are awesome!”
