COLUMBIA, Mo.—The (RV) William Woods University women's basketball team extended its winning streak to four games on Thursday night, as the Owls defeated Stephens College, 76-30.
The Owls (5-1; 1-0 AMC), shot 44.3 percent from the field and 47.1 percent from downtown, while defensively, WWU limited the Stars (0-5; 0-1 AMC) to a season-low 30 points on 21.1 percent shooting from the floor.
Thirteen different Owls totaled at least two points in the game and were led by
Veronica Jones, as the Fulton, Missouri, native, netted a career-high 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting in 22:32 minutes of play off the bench.
Nia Lateju,
Marissa Webb and
Lindsey Cornelius each contributed eight points, while
Julia Wells added six.
Blake French,
Kendra Vernatti and
Karinne Lane, meanwhile, totaled five points apiece. On the boards, WWU outrebounded Stephens 56-31, with
Grace Wade leading the way with a career-high nine rebounds. Cornelius contributed eight, while Vernatti grabbed down seven, which are also career-high marks for the duo.
It was quite the start for William Woods, as they jumped out to a 21-0 lead, as
Dennisha Rice capped the run off with a two point basket off a turnover, at the 14:19 mark.
The Stars were able to net its first basket of the game at 10:40, after Bridget Teixeira netted a three-pointer. The Owls would responded with a 10-0 run of its own over the next 5:00 minutes, as Jones extended the teams' Â advantage out to 28 points (31-3), after hitting a two point basket in the paint.
William Woods would outscore Stephens 10-8 over the final 5:40 of the first half and head to the locker room up 41-11. The Owls defense held the Stars to just four made baskets in the first half, while offensively, WWU hit 43.6 percent of its shots, outrebounded the Stars 33-14 and were led by Jones having eight points.
The offense continued to roll in the second half for the Owls, as they pushed its lead out to 59-21 at the 11:13 mark, after Cornelius hit a two-pointer.
The team would extend its advantage out to a game-high 49 points (76-27), after Jones went 2-of-2 from the free throw line with just under 3:00 minutes remaining and the Owls were able to go on for the 46-point victory.
The Stars were led by Teixeira scoring a team-high 10 points on 4-of-15 shooting. Makayla Butler added six, while Kaitlee Hess and Kaitlynn Rasmussen contributed four points each.
With the win, the Owls are now 1-0 in American Midwest Conference (AMC) play and after a five-game road trip, the team will return to Anderson Arena in front of its home crowd on Saturday afternoon, as the Owls take on Benedictine University at Springfield. Tip-off will start at 2 p.m.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com tomorrow afternoon for a full preview of Saturday's action.
