Defense, Free Throws Guide WPU Past Briar Cliff
William Penn University Athletics
by Wade Steinlage
Sioux Center–The Statesmen women’s basketball team scored nearly half of its points at the charity stripe and played great defense in defeating Briar Cliff 65-56 at the Dordt Classic Saturday.
William Penn (6-3) shot just 28.3%, but limited the Chargers (5-5) to 32.1% from the floor and forced them into 24 turnovers.
The navy and gold scored the night’s first five points, but then allowed BCU to tally the next 10 to get doubled up midway through the opening stanza. Both sides went on mini runs to lead to a 16-16 tie after the first 10 minutes of action.
The Statesmen fell behind 18-16 to start the second quarter, but finished the low-scoring period with a 9-2 run and never trailed again.
Up 25-20 at intermission, William Penn had another strong effort in the third to extend the advantage to 44-31.
WPU entered Saturday shooting a respectable 67.9% at the free-throw line, but was pushed to do even better in the final quarter as it ventured to the stripe 24 times. Fortunately, the Statesmen were successful, hitting their first 11 tries and going 19-for-24 in the quarter. William Penn finished 30-for-41 overall to ice the contest.
Sarah Hansen (Sr., Neponset, Ill., Psychology and Human Services) did the most damage at the line with a 13-for-14 showing as part of her 24-point evening. She also hit three three-pointers and stole five passes as well.
The Statesmen overcame being outrebounded 44-40 by managing a 13-12 mark on the offensive end. William Penn committed eight fewer turnovers (16-24), but were unable to convert those extra chances, being outscored 7-2 in points off mistakes.
Kate Ylitalo (So., Maple Plain, Minn., Biology) joined Hansen in double figures with 10 points, while Vashti Nwagbaraocha (Jr., Milwaukee, Wis., Exercise Science) and RaChelle Parks (Jr., Grand Junction, Tenn., Computer Science) both recorded eight points.
Sham Troupe (Jr., St. Louis, Mo.) added six points in addition to a team-high eight rebounds (also had four steals). Jenna Santi (Jr., Oak Creek, Wis., Elementary Education) was a solid contributor as well with five points, four assists, and three steals.
“We played Statesmen basketball tonight!” Head Coach Steve Williamson said. “We played hard and determined for 40 minutes and were aggressive offensively, leading to all those free-throw chances.”
Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa next Wednesday to open Heart of America Athletic Conference play by hosting Mount Mercy at 5:30 p.m.
