LAMONI, Iowa.—The (RV) William Woods University women's basketball team had four players reach double-figures in points on Saturday afternoon, which allowed the Owls to stay perfect on the year, as they defeated Graceland University, 69-49.
The Owls (4-0), shot 40.8 percent from the floor and dominated the glass, having a rebounding advantage of 58-38, over the Yellowjackets (0-3).
Leading the way on the night for WWU, was
Nia Lateju, who recorded her second double-double on the year, as she netted a game-high 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting and added 10 rebounds.
Kennedy Volkart, also earned her second double-double on the season, as she totaled 10 points and tied the game-high with 11 rebounds, all of which were on the defensive side of the glass.
Julia Wells, a Springfield, Missouri, native, totaled 12 points and seven boards in 31:00 minutes of action, while
Kendra Vernatti, who made her first start on the season, played well, having 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting.
April Gebke, totaled eight points and a team-high five assists, while
Marissa Webb added seven off the bench.
Graceland, meanwhile, couldn't get much going against the Owls defense, as they shot just 25.4 percent from the field. Emily Work led the way for Graceland, having 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting, while Sydney Vaughn collected a double-double of her own, having 13 points and 11 rebounds.
In the first quarter, it was the Yellowjackets, jumping out to the 14-9 advantage at the 5:22 mark, after Gabrielle Lapinski drained a 3-pointer. The Owls, would battle back, going on a 6-0 run, with Wells making her two point shot at the 2:40 mark, which gave WWU the lead at 15-14.
Then, with under .10 seconds left in the quarter, the Owls trailed 19-17, but tied it up just prior to the horn sounding, as
Kelsey Scherder sinked her two-pointer, which tied the score up at 19-all.
The second quarter belonged to the Owls, as they took a 21-19 lead, after Webb made both of her free throw shots with 7:57 left. WWU, then dominated, going on a 15-2 run, capped off by Lateju making her two-pointer, which extended the teams' lead out to 36-21, its largest of the quarter.
WWU, maintained its double-digit lead the rest of the quarter and headed into halftime, well ahead at 41-28.
The Owls, held the Yellowjackets to just nine points in the quarter, while overall in the two quarters combined, they forced seven Graceland turnovers and held them to a mere field goal percentage of 28.6.
William Woods, meanwhile, shot 48.6 percent from the field, while four different players had totaled eight points.
In the third quarter, the Owls were able to stretch its lead out 57-37, after Lateju stole the ball from Nina Gavoli, got the bucket and the foul. She went on to make the free throw and stretch the lead out to 57-47, with just under 5:00 minutes left.
Three minutes later, Wells hit her shot, off an assist from Gebke, which put the Owls ahead 61-39. The team maintained that lead the rest of the quarter and headed into the fourth, up by 22 points.
After outscoring the Yellowjackets 42-20 in the second and third quarter, the Owls were able to hold onto its 20-plus point advantage in the fourth, as Volkart hit her shot with 4:00 minutes left, which put WWU ahead 69-45.
The Owls, put the game away from then on and secure its 20-point victory and stay undefeated on the season.
WWU will now return home and jump into American Midwest Conference (AMC) play, as they host No. 17-ranked Lyon College on November 19
th. Tip-off starts at 5:30 p.m.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com later next week for a full preview of its game against the Scots.
