December 31, 2007

The non-Conference schedule winds down this week.  On the women’s side, Webster (two games), Westminster, Greenville and Maryville all have non-Conference contests on the slate before starting Conference action back-up.  The men’s side is not quite as busy as Greenville plays Harris Stowe and Westminster hosts Illinois College before teams jump back into Conference play.

The Maryville women finished third at the Surf ‘n Slam Tournament in San Diego with an overtime win over Gustavus Adolphus in the third-place game after trailing by as many as seven points as late as with 4:12 remaining.  A Sara Wemlinger three-pointer with 1:33 remaining tied the game and Maryville went on to win 68-64.  The Saints lone loss in the Tournament was at the hands of 15th-ranked UW-Stevens Point (91-66) in the semifinal.

Fontbonne (81-55 over Cal Tech) and Webster (67-64 over Missouri Baptist) also registered non-Conference wins over the break.  The Gorloks overcame a seven-point halftime deficit behind four players in double-figures led by freshman Katy Meyer’s 20-point, 15-rebound performance, her first career double-double.

Fontbonne won both of its men’s games on the west coast including a 66-59 win over Hope International and a 65-47 win over Cal Tech.  Falling in the category of losses to tough competition, MacMurray fell at the hands of Division I Arkansas State (92-43), the 2006-07 Sun Belt Conference co-Champion; and Westminster fell to Walsh University, the third-ranked team in NAIA Division II.

The Conference schedule resumes on Saturday with Eureka travelling to Maryville, Fontbonne at Blackburn, MacMurray at Greenville and Webster at Principia.  The men’s contests begin at 1:00 p.m. and the women tip at 3:00 p.m.  Westminster plays at Lincoln Christian in a non-Conference doubleheader with 1:00 and 3:00 starts.