2012 Women's Basketball Tournament Preview
ST. LOUIS - Westminster College's women's basketball team claimed their second consecutive regular season conference championship to earn the #1 seed in the 2012 SLIAC Tournament. The remainder of the field is set with Eureka College, Fontbonne University and Webster University joining Westminster in the battle for this year's tournament crown. Semifinal action begins Friday, February 24, and the championship will be played on Saturday, February 25, all in Fulton, Mo..
Top-seeded Westminster will host fourth-seeded Webster at 8:00pm on Friday, in what will be a rematch of last year's tournament championship. Westminster (20-4) went 14-2 in conference play this season, with their two losses coming by a combined five-point deficit. Webster (12-13) was 10-6 in the conference, and went on a three-game win streak to end regular season conference play and earn a spot in the tournament.
Second-seeded Eureka will take on third-seeded Fontbonne at 6:00pm on Friday. Eureka (20-4) went 13-3 in league play and swept the Griffins during the regular season. Fontbonne (15-10) finished 12-4 in the conference.
Westminster is 5-11 in 11 SLIAC women's basketball tournament appearances. The Blue Jays will be looking for their first Conference Tournament Championship, after falling short 74-58 last year.
Eureka will be making its first appearance in the SLIAC Tournament. The Red Devils' 13 conference victories this season were the most by the Eureka women's basketball program in 16 conference-affiliated seasons at the NCAA Division III level, besting teh previous mark of 10 wins set during the 2006-07 SLIAC schedule.
Fontbonne is 20-13 in 16 SLIAC women's basketball tournament appearances. The Griffins have won three Tournament Championships, with their last in 2010 as the #1 seed. Fontbonne has also played for the Tournament Championship a total of six times in the past nine tournaments.
Webster is 6-11 in 13 SLIAC women's basketball tournament appearances and is the defending Tournament Champion. The Gorloks have claimed two tournament titles; in 2005 as the #2 seed and in 2011 as the #3 seed. They defeated top-seed Westminster 74-58 in the Tournament Championship to take home the crown.
SLIAC Women's Tournament Bracket:
Semifinals (Feb. 24)
#3-Fontbonne vs. #2-Eureka, 6:00pm
#4-Webster at #1-Westminster, 8:00pm
Championship (Feb. 25)
Semifinal winners, 7:00pm
The four coaches representing this year's tournament field participated in a live chat earlier this week. An archive of the chat is available here.
