William Penn Drops Championship Game to CMU
William Penn University Athletics
by Wade Steinlage
Fayette, Mo.–With a berth to nationals already in its back pocket, the Statesmen women’s basketball team was seeking to add some hardware Tuesday, but came up short in an 84-68 loss to top seed Central Methodist in the Heart of America Athletic Conference Tournament Finals.
#2 seed WPU (23-8) failed to grab its first-ever conference tournament crown, but nonetheless, its season will still continue next week in Billings, Mont. at the NAIA Division I National Championships from March 14-20. The navy and gold will learn Wednesday who they will play in the first round during a Selection Show Watch Party in Penn Gymnasium beginning at 4:30 p.m. The NAIA’s selection show will be aired at 5 p.m. at http://www.naia.org/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=27900&ATCLID=211703179
The Eagles (26-7), the Heart’s regular season champions, showed early why they have now won 14 games in a row. The hosts scored the first eight points and eventually led 26-14 at the end of the first quarter. The margin grew to 15 points (31-16) before the Statesmen proved why they are joining CMU at nationals, going on a 16-5 run to pull within four (36-32) midway through the second stanza.
Central Methodist, which rallied back and held a 49-38 advantage at intermission, pushed the edge to 18 in the third. William Penn did not back down, though, and a bit down the road posted nine unanswered points to make it a 66-58 contest with 8:20 still left in regulation.
CMU was unfortunately too much down the stretch as it finished its sweep of league titles.
WPU was outshot 50.0%-34.5% and outrebounded 40-37, but stayed close by making one more three-pointer (8-7) and seven more free throws (22-15) than the home squad. The Statesmen unfortunately committed 20 turnovers (13 for CMU), which led to a 25-11 deficit in points off mistakes.
Despite tallying a 13-10 advantage in offensive rebounds, William Penn also lost the second-chance points battle 16-9.
Sarah Hansen (Sr., Kewanee, Ill., Psychology) and Vashti Nwagbaraocha (Jr., Milwaukee, Wis., Exercise Science) guided the visitors with 20 points each. Hansen was 4-for-6 from behind the arc and also made eight of her 10 free throws. Nwagbaraocha recorded a double-double with 11 rebounds and was 10-for-15 from the charity stripe.
JeAnn Hiraldo (Sr., Frisco, Texas, Industrial Technology) joined her teammates in double figures with 11 points, while Sham Troupe (Jr., St. Louis, Mo.) added seven points in addition to three steals.
Kate Ylitalo (So., Maple Plain, Minn., Biology) and Morgan Neeley (Sr., Flint, Mich., Exercise Science) each scored four points, while Jenna Santi (Jr., Oak Creek, Wis., Sports Management) dished out four assists in the setback.
“Of course we are disappointed that we lost, but Central Methodist is a great team and is very well-coached,” Head Coach Steve Williamson said. “We are excited to be one of 32 teams to be playing in Billings, Mont. We now need to prepare these next few days to be able to compete against the top teams in the NAIA. We want to go out there and represent William Penn and the Heart of America Conference in a positive manner.”
