The no.19-ranked William Woods University women's basketball team will step away from Anderson Arena as they venture to Park University for an American Midwest Conference showdown on Thursday. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
The Matchup
The Owls come into Thursday's contest with a 4-1 AMC record after splitting a pair of conference home games against Lyon College (55-62) and Williams Baptist (59-48). WWU has collected 13 wins to just two losses overall on the year.
Park University currently stands at 2-3 in the AMC with wins over Missouri Baptist (53-43) and Harris-Stowe (56-50). The Pirates have lost four of their last six games are 5-9 overall on the year.
William Woods has averaged 67.4 ppg on the year and has outscored their opposition by 12.2 ppg. Park puts up 52.4 ppg and has been outscored by its opponents by an average of 7.5 ppg.
The Owls hold the advantage in overall field goal percentage at .399 compared to the Pirates' .357. Both teams have struggled this year from behind the arc, but William Woods holds a .292-.216 edge from deep. The Owls also best the Pirates at the free throw line .702-.552.
WWU once again dominates its opponent in the rebounding category holding a 44.5-34.6 advantage over the Pirates. WWU has been outrebounding teams by a margin of 7.3 boards per game, while Park University is being outrebounded by 6.1 caroms per contest.
Park University commits 20.3 turnovers per game compared to just 15.5 for William Woods. However, the Pirates force teams to turn the ball over 22.9 times per contest, while the Owls force 16.1 errors per contest.
Last Time Out
William Woods forced 20 turnovers and used a 22-4 scoring advantage at the free throw line to take a 59-48 American Midwest Conference victory on Tuesday night.
The Owls would build their lead up to double digits several times during the second half but a pesky Lady Eagles squad was able to cut the lead to five with a little more than three minutes remaining. The Owls defense squashed any hope of a WBC comeback as they allowed only two points down the stretch and hit all six free throw attempts as they sealed the 59-48 victory.
Destani Stensrud was the only Owl in double figures on the night with a career-tying 16 points.
Filling In Nicely
Since the beginning of conference play
Destani Stensrud has filled in for the injured
Ashlee Taylor. Since being inserted into the lineup the sophomore guard has averaged 8.6 points per game, 5.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game.
The Rebounding Guard
Junior
Katie Scherder is listed as a guard on the roster, but her 5-11 stature has helped her pull down rebounds over smaller defenders. Scherder leads the team in rebounding at 6.5 boards per game. Since conference play has started Scherder has elevated her game, averaging 8.4 caroms per game. The mark is the second-highest average in conference games in the AMC.
Taking Advantage Of Charity
William Woods broke out of its recent shooting slump from the free throw line on Tuesday as they connected on 22-of-26 attempts for a season best .846.
Destani Stensrud led the Owls on the night with a perfect 6-of-6 at the charity stripe.
Through 15 games the Owls are hitting .702 of the time at the line, the 23rd-best pace in the nation. Individually,
Julia Wells is ranked 38th with an accuracy rate of .769.
Wells battled her way into the national rankings with an 11-for-13 performance from the line against College of the Ozarks, Wells has shown that she's a big threat at the line, knocking down seven free throws in eight tries against St. Gregory's.
After being a mainstay in the national rankings over the first half of the year,
Priscila Santos has seen herself float in and out of the top 50 rankings. The junior is hitting .719 on the year at the charity stripe.
Hard-Nosed Defense
Over the last few games William Woods has seen its offensive production edge lower, but its margin of victory has risen mainly because of shutdown defense. Since Dec. 4 the Owls have only allowed teams to score more than 57 points twice and held teams under the 50-point plateau three times. WWU's margin of victory is 27th-best in the NAIA at 12.2.
WWU is currently ranked 12th in the nation in scoring defense, holding opponents to just 55.200 points per game on the year. The Owls are seventh in field-goal defense, allowing foes to hit at just a .339 pace from the floor.
Balanced Attack
While the Owls have managed 67.4 points per game on the year, there hasn't been a single player to key on to ensure success.
Priscila Santos is the only Owl to average double figures with 13.1 points per game, but
Stephanie Copelin (9.2),
Ashlee Taylor (9.0),
Olivia Storjohann (8.4) and
Katie Scherder (8.1) are all within a basket of the 10-point plateau.
The Owls have not seen a game this year without at least one double-digit scorer, and on Tuesday they were held to just one 10-point scorer for the second time on the year.
Win Big, Lose Small
William Woods has posted good-sized margins in each of its 13 wins on the year, taking home victory by two possessions or more in each contest. The 37-point victory over Hannibal-LaGrange last Thursday marked the largest margin of victory on the year.
Stock In Windex?
Ranked second in the country in defensive rebounds per game at 30.867, the Owls have definitely cleaned the glass well this year. WWU holds a margin of 7.267 per game on the year (19th) and like its offensive output, the Owls have seen the workload spread across the roster.
Katie Scherder leads the team with 6.5 grabs per game,
Priscila Santos comes in second with 6.0 boards per game.
Olivia Storjohann is third on the team with 5.7 grabs per game, with
Stephanie Copelin coming in fourth with 5.3 rpg.
Julia Wells round out the group with her 4.7 caroms per game.
Is That Right?
Although the Owls' rebounding performance against AIB College of Business is certainly a contender for the best in WWU history, it's somewhat of a rarity as the Owls scored fewer points than they grabbed rebounds but still won the game. Although out of the ordinary, it's not the first time that it has happened - but likely the first with such a large rebounding total. During the 2004-05 season, Western Baptist (now Corban University) outrebounded the College of Idaho 42-38 in a 40-38 win.
A Look At Park University
Park University currently stands at 2-3 in the AMC with wins over Missouri Baptist (53-43) and Harris-Stowe (56-50). The Pirates have lost four of their last six games are 5-9 overall on the year.
Brianna Beridon leads a duo of double-figure scorers with 17.7 points per game. The 5-7 senior has scored double figures in the last five games and has averaged 19.0 points per contest during the stretch. Beridon scored 31 points earlier this season against in the 58-49 victory over Avila University on Nov. 3.
Taylor Lloyd follows Beridon in the scoring column with her 10.2 points per game average.
The Pirates have really struggled from the three-point arc this season as they shoot .216 on 22-of-102 attempts. Joanna Matthews leads the team with a .303 percentage on a team-high 10-of-33 attempts.
Despite the Pirates' struggles at shooting the trifecta they have been spectacular in defending the three-point shot. Park ranks second in the NAIA in defensive three-point percentage holding opponents to .229 from three-point land.
Rebounding has been a struggle for Park University this season. The Pirates are averaging 34.6 boards per game and are giving up 40.6 caroms per contest. Jessica Madsen leads the team in rebounding at 6.6 boards per game. The forward has grabbed double-digit caroms in the last two games and collected her first double-double on the season against Williams Baptist with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
