FULTON, Mo.—The final two undefeated teams' in American Midwest Conference (AMC) play will go toe-to-toe on Tuesday night, as the (RV) William Woods University women's basketball team will take on the No. 1-ranked Freed-Hardeman University Lady Lions. Tipoff will start at 5:30 p.m.
The Owls (8-1; 4-0 AMC), return to the court for the first time since December 6
th, after defeating Williams Baptist College on the road, 64-51, which extended the teams' winning streak to a season-high, seven games.
Against the Lady Eagles, William Woods shot 41.4 percent from the field and were led by sophomore
Kennedy Volkart, netting a career-high 21 points on 10-of-18 shooting, while adding nine rebounds. Junior
Nia Lateju contributed 11 points and seven boards, while
Blake French and
Destani Stensrud added nine and eight points respectively.
During its seven game winning streak, the Owls have played well on both ends of the floor, scoring 77.9 points, while limiting its foes on the defensive end to just 55.3 points per game.
Offensively, the team is shooting 45.5 percent from the field, 37.6 percent from the three-point arc, 72.1 percent from the free throw line and hold a rebounding advantage of 306-225.
Lateju, a Norwalk, California, native, is putting up 12.6 points the last seven games, while shooting 50.8 percent from the field and is third on the team with 33 rebounds. French is second on the team in points per game (11.6), while hitting a team-high 60.4 percent from the field and continues to make it count from the free throw line, going 17-of-18 (94.4 percent).
Volkart, meanwhile, upped her point per game average to 11.1 during the winning streak, while also shooting 51.6 percent from the field and has totaled a team-high 38 rebounds.
On the season, Lateju (12.3 ppg), French (11.8 ppg) and Volkart (10.4 ppg), are pacing an offense that is scoring 75.7 points per game and shooting 44.2 percent from the floor. All three players are draining at least 45.0 percent of its shots from the field, while French leads the trio at the free throw line, hitting 89.3 percent of her shots, which ranks her fourth overall in the NAIA. Â
Marissa Webb, a junior, is averaging just under 10.0 points per game (9.3), while draining 50.8 percent of her shots from the field and is an added threat from downtown, as the Poplar Bluff, Missouri, native, is netting 51.6 percent of her shots, which is fourth best in the NAIA.
As a team, the Owls rank in the top 20 in the NAIA in numerous categories, including, eighth in three point field goal percentage (37.2), ninth in free throw percentage (72.3), ninth in three point field goal percentage defense (24.8), 15
th in total rebound margin (9.77), 15
th in three point field goals made per game (6.7), 15
th in total rebound defense (33.7), 15
th in field goal percentage (44.2), 16
th in scoring margin (18.5), 17
th in defensive rebounds per game (30.5) and 19
th in scoring defense (57.1).
William Woods will be looking for redemption against a Lady Lions (9-1; 4-0 AMC) team, that swept the Owls in the three meetings last year, including eliminating WWU from the AMC Tournament Semifinals.
Freed-Hardeman, is currently riding a nine game winning streak, including defeating then No. 20-ranked Columbia College in its last time out, 89-78. The Lady Lions, shot 45.5 percent from the field against the Cougars and had five players reach double-figures in points.
Leading the way was Hayley Newby, scoring a game-high 26 points on 10-of-13 shooting and added nine boards. Taleeah Cross and Kenley Crowell added 17 points apiece, while Paige Melville added 12. Grace Alonso de Armino, meanwhile, collected 11 points and 10 rebounds.
On the season, FHU is scoring 81.1 points per game and are led by Newby, averaging a team-high 20.1 points, which is ninth best in the NAIA. She is also shooting 53.3 percent from the field, 80.9 percent from the free throw line and has totaled 115 rebounds (11.5 rpg).
Melville is second on the team in points (13.3 ppg) and has dished out a team-high 39 assists, while Alsonso de Armino is scoring 12.3 points and totaled 140 rebounds (14.0 rpg). Alonso de Armino also ranks first in the NAIA in defensive rebounds per game (eight), offensive rebounds per game (six) and total rebounds per game (14).
Cross is the fourth player averaging double-figures in points on the season (11.7 ppg), while shooting 46.8 percent from the floor and is second on the team in assists (38).
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com tomorrow night for a full recap and score from Anderson Arena.
