BATESVILLE, ARK. – The no.23-ranked William Woods University women's basketball team continues the defense of its 2012 American Midwest Conference Tournament title on Friday as they travel to no.17-ranked Lyon College. Tip-off for this AMC semifinal is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Both squads advanced to the semifinals after collecting a win the AMC quarterfinals. William Woods (24-5, 14-4 AMC) had no trouble with Harris-Stowe State University as they defeated the Lady Hornets 79-49. Junior
Katie Scherder scored a career-high 19 points in the victory. The Owls hit 12 trifectas on the night, led by a personal-best five three point field goals from Scherder.
Lyon College (28-3, 17-1 AMC) had to overcome a halftime deficit against Missouri Baptist to score the 79-62 victory. Phagen Altom tied her career-high with 23 points. The guard went 6-of-11 from the field, and 9-of-10 from the line on the night. The Scots were down 41-39 at the half, but outscored the Spartans 41-20 in the second frame to run away with the 17-point victory.
This will be the third meeting between the two top 25 AMC schools this year. Lyon College has been victorious in both games, scoring the 62-55 victory in Fulton on Jan. 12 and winning 77-70 in overtime in Batesville on Feb. 9.
The game will feature the top two defenses in the league, as Lyon College ranks first in points allowed by giving up 55.7 points per contest. William Woods follows the Scots closely as they give up 57.2 points per game.
Priscila Santos leads the Owls with her 16.3 points per game average. Santos had her nine-game streak of scoring at least 20 points snapped on Wednesday as she recorded 13 points in just 16 minutes of action. The Brazilian native scored a then career-high 26 points against Lyon in the Feb. 9 overtime loss. Santos hit a buzzer-beater to send the game into overtime.
The Scots are led by Debbie Onukwube's 12.3 points per game average. The forward posted 20 points and seven rebounds against the Owls in their last meeting. Altom is just a tenth-of-a-point behind Onukwube's average. The guard is averaging 15.5 points in the two games against William Woods.
Fan can follow live stats at wwuowls.com.
