SLIAC Women's Basketball Championship Game Set
The 2020 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Championship game is set and will feature top-seeded and host school Webster University against #3 seed Spalding University. Webster is trying to win their first ever SLIAC Title on home court while Spalding will be playing for Head Coach Charlie Just, who announced this will be his last season as Golden Eagles head coach. The two teams take the court at 7 p.m. tomorrow night in Grant Gymnasium on the campus of Webster University.
Spalding 84, Fontbonne 74 - BOX SCORE
Fontbonne and Spalding traded off leads for the first three quarters of the game before Spalding was able to take control in the 4th quarter. Fontbonne opened the game with five quick points behind a three from Rylee Stafford and a layup from Kourtney White. But the balanced attack by Spalding, with all eight of their first baskets coming from a different Golden Eagle, kept the Griffin defense on edge and quickly evened the score. The two teams were tied at 18 until Maleah Hirn hit a three at the buzzer to give Spalding a 21-18 lead after the opening quarter. The second quarter belonged to Fontbonne, outscoring the Golden Eagles 20-13 in the frame, and taking a 38-34 lead into halftime. Again it was a quarter ending buzzer-beater for the Golden Eagles, this time off the hands of Hannah Renfro, in the third quarter to carry a 54-51 Spalding lead into the fourth and final quarter. A jumper by Venegas pulled the Griffins to within one point early but that was the closest they would get in the fourth quarter as the Golden Eagles offense got hot again, shooting 64-percent in the quarter.
- Spalding shot 73-percent from the field in the opening quarter.
- Rylee Stafford's first three-pointer of the game broke the Fontbonne record for most three-pointers in a single season.
- Spalding is making its second consecutive appearance in the SLIAC Championship game and will be looking for its first title since 2015.
Webster 78, Greenville 63 - BOX SCORE
Greenville blitzed Webster at the start, opening the game with a 6-0 run while the Gorloks missed their first five shots. Greenville maintained their lead throughout the quarter, upping it to 18-16 after a jumper by Hannah Krukewitt. However, the Gorloks had enough time on the clock to get a final shot with Hannah Cottrell popping a three at the buzzer that gave Webster their first and only lead of the quarter. The Gorloks turned up the defensive pressure in the second quarter, limiting the Panthers to just nine points and taking a 33-27 lead into halftime. The Gorloks took a 56-46 lead into the fourth, despite Greenville shooting 78-percent from the field in the third quarter. Webster turned the ball over on three of their first four possessions in the fourth quarter, allowing Greenville to close the score to 58-54 after a pair of Brittany Lopez free-throws with 7:18 on the clock. An Addison Beussink jumper snapped the Gorloks out of their funk as they were able to pull away down the stretch for the win.
- Webster scored 30 points off turnovers in the game, forcing a total of 20 turnovers.
- Webster shot 50-percent in the game, finishing over 50-percent in every quarter except the second.
