Statesmen Take Down Owls for First Heart Win
Oskaloosa – The Statesmen women’s basketball team came from behind to defeat William Woods 54-53 in Heart of America Athletic Conference play Saturday
William Penn (3-7, 1-2) snapped its five game skid by outshooting the Owls 36.4%-35.2%.
The Statesmen struggled early as the Owls pushed on a 9-2 run six minutes into the contest. Kayla Peoples (Sr., Waco, Texas, Secondary Education) hit a three-pointer to stop the drought. The Owls closed the quarter strong, leading William Penn 14-5.
An Owl free throw opened scoring in the second before Meghanne Freehill (Jr., Lewiston, Ill., Sports Management) answered with her lone three on the day. The teams traded through the second and William Woods pulled to a 28-20 lead by the end of the half.
Peoples scored a layup to open scoring 45 seconds into the second half, followed by a three-pointer from Neva’eh Diaz-Doolin (Fr., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Biology) to cut the defecit to 28-25. The Statesmen stayed in striking distance but trailed 39-34 at the end of the third stanza.
William Woods looked to keep control until the Statesmen rallied to tie the competition at 51 on a layup by Taylor Lawhorne (Sr., Amityville, N.Y., Business Management) with 2:25 to play. After the Owls regained the lead with a layup, Peoples answered with a jumper to even the score at 53.
A foul sent Dekota Smith (Jr., Toledo, Ohio, Computer Science) to the line, she hit the dagger and gave William Penn a 54-53 lead with 1:03 left. The navy and gold defense held firm to hold on for the win.
William Woods shot 27.3% from beyond the arc, while William Penn finished at 36.4%. The Owls held a 38-37 rebounding advantage, though the Statesmen led 12-6 in second-chance points.
William Penn finished 8-for-18 from the free-throw line, while the Owls went 9-for-15.
William Woods committed 16 turnovers and the Statesmen had 14. William Penn converted those into 12 points, the Owls were only able to muster 6.
Kayla Jones (Sr., Louisville, Ky., Psychology) led William Penn with 12 points, and Lawhorne also reached double figures with 10. Peoples scored nine, Diaz-Doolin had eight, Freehill tallied seven, while Smith ended with six.
Taylor Lawhorne paced William Penn with nine rebounds, while Peoples grabbed eight boards, and Smith had five.
Dekota Smith led the navy and gold with four assists.
“We made a lot of mistakes in this game.” Head Coach Sheawn Bedford Jr. said. “But our effort and resilience came through for us when we needed it the most. I’m so proud of our entire program. We have to learn and build from this win!”
Next Up: The Statesmen go back on the road to take on Mount Mercy in Heart of America Athletics Conference play on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
