BELLEVILLE, Ill. -- The No. 19-ranked William Woods University women's basketball team faces a tough task as they jump back into regular season play on Tuesday night with a road game against Lindenwood University-Belleville. Tip-off for this matchup is set for 6 p.m.
William Woods (3-0) is coming off a 98-55 exhibition loss at NCAA Division I Western Illinois University. Senior guard Katie Scherder tallied a season-high 19 points, despite not playing in the game's final eight minutes. The Owls normally stingy defense gave up a season-high in points, as the Leathernecks collected 16 three point field goals, and shot a blistering 48.5 percent from behind the arc.
"We were disappointed in the outcome, as we have competed better against them in years past," said head coach Dan Chapla. "I thought we played a lot better in the second half against the best team we will play this year. We were humbled that night and we can use it as a learning experience moving forward."
In their last regular season game, the Owls collected a 70-39 home win over Haskell Indian Nations University. Senior guard Andraquay Quinnine recorded her third straight double-digit scoring game in the win.
Through three regular season games, Quinnine is averaging a team best 17.7 points per game on 59 percent shooting from the floor.
"We've got her some open looks and she has been able to knock them down," Chapla said of his guard. "She has a spectacular shooting percentage right now and is really giving us a spark on offense. I've never had a player that has been able to pick up our system so quick, and we are looking forward to her development as the season goes on."
Lindenwood-Belleville, who will be joining the American Midwest Conference next season, stands at 6-2 on the year and has an impressive 79-74 victory at No. 15 Columbia College on its resume. Â
"This will be the best Lindenwood-Belleville team that we have faced," expressed Chapla. "They have a few good wins on the year, and added to that with its victory over St. Ambrose this past weekend. It's going to be a test for our team and we have to be ready to go."
This game will be a battle of contrasting styles, as a stingy Owls defense, which gives up 52 points a game on 30 percent from the floor, faces a high scoring team that averages 87.3 points per contest on 48 percent shooting.
"Tomorrow is going to be a test between a good defense and a good offense. The key for us is to limit Shelby Kohrman, but it will be a tough task because they have so many weapons including Diamond Burt (averaging 16 points a game). We have to stay at it and play hard defense to give ourselves a chance at the end."
Korhman leads a quartet of double-digit scorers for the Lady Lynx, as she averages an even 18 points per contest on 51 percent shooting from the floor. The junior college transfer collected a season-high 34 points in a 138-118 loss against Olivet Nazarene back on Nov. 5.
Chapla feels like his team has the edge in terms of size, as Lindenwood-Belleville's five guard set has allowed them to get outrebounded 38.8-37.1 this season.
"We have to get some points in the paint tomorrow night. We should have the rebounding edge, so there will be opportunities to get some points there, and we have to capitalize on those chances."
The Owls swept the season series against the Lady Lynx last season, as they scored a 73-60 win at Belleville and a 59-44 victory in Fulton.
Check back with wwuowls.com for a full recap of this and every game during the 2013-14 season.
