LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. - Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference women's basketball teams geared up for the New Year and the height of SCAC play with a plethora of non-conference games during the holidays.
AROUND THE SCAC
Austin College went 2-1 in games played from
December 17 through December 31. The Kangaroos split two games with
former SCAC rivals Rhodes (66-58 L) and Hendrix (46-39 W)
before beating Agnes Scott (45-34). Austin College dropped a New
Year’s Day matinee game to Texas-Dallas 67-47. The
‘Roos are now 6-8 overall and remain 0-4 in league play.
Austin College will return to action on Jan. 5 when the ‘Roos
travel to SCAC newcomer Centenary.
Centenary (3-9, 2-2 SCAC) went 1-2 in three games over the
holidays. Their lone win came against conference foe University of
Dallas, who the Ladies beat twice in a row in dramatic fashion
again 76-74. Centenary shot 42.3 percent from the field, and
sophomore Dionecia Warr led the Ladies with 23 points. She was
named SCAC women’s basketball player of the week that
previous week for her excellent performance that Saturday against
the Crusaders. After a week off, the Ladies participated in the BSC
Sheraton Classic where they fell in both games. The Ladies lost to
Rhodes College 86-79 on Saturday, and Vashni Sharp-Moore led the
Ladies with 19 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double. On
Sunday, the Ladies would rally and come up just short falling to
Birmingham Southern College 79-77. Warr led the Ladies with 31
points and Sharp-Moore was right behind with 28 points and 11
rebounds for her second consecutive double-double. The Ladies were
down 44-25 at halftime, but outscored the Panthers 52-35 in the
second half, shooting 48 percent from the field. Centenary returns
to action on January 5 at home and plays Austin College at 3
p.m.
Colorado College returned to action hosting No. 3 Calvin
College and Concordia University Wisconsin in Reid Arena to close
out 2012. The Tigers dropped both contests, falling to the Knights,
78-32, and to the Falcons, 60-36. Freshman Katie Wirth grabbed a
career-high eight rebounds against Calvin, while freshman Danielle
Davis tied her career-high eight rebounds against
Concordia-Wisconsin to lead the team on defense. Sophomore Courtney
Tyus led the team averaging 7.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists
and 2.5 steals a game. Colorado College (2-10) hits the road to
begin the New Year as it returns to conference action to take on
Southwestern University on Jan. 4 and Trinity University on Jan.
5.
Dallas (5-5, 0-2 SCAC) went 0-3 this reporting period, and
have dropped four consecutive after winning four straight. On
Monday, Dec. 17, the Crusaders were clipped 76-74 by Centenary
College of Louisiana in an ebb-and-flow affair at the Maher
Athletic Center. The loss gave Dallas back-to-back losses to
Centenary by a combined three points. Next on the docket were to
road contests for head coach Jina Johansen's squad. Wednesday, Dec.
19, brought a 63-53 defeat at the hands of Millsaps College, while
the team closed out 2012 with a 66-53 loss to LeTourneau University
on Monday, Dec. 31. On tap this week for Dallas are two SCAC road
games -- Trinity (Friday, 6 p.m.); Southwestern (Saturday, 6
p.m.).
Southwestern went 2-2 over the holiday break, facing tough
competition to prepare to jump back into SCAC conference action in
the new year. Before the holidays, SU hosted Wartburg College on
the 17th and hit a second half skid that allowed the Warriors back
in the game to eventually defeat Southwestern 75-71. The Pirates
came back from the break with a renewed vision and trounced
Blackburn College in St. Louis 95-42. A huge second half allowed SU
to pull away as five Pirates scored in double-digits in the win.
After getting a win under their belt the Pirates faced their
toughest match-up of the break in #5 Washington University (Mo.).
SU played extremely well, shooting nearly 70% from three point
range, but they still fell short of the upset 82-73. To round out
the trip, Southwestern took on Webster College and cruised to an
easy 85-61 victory behind Jordan Owens' 28 points and nine
rebounds. The Pirates sit at 8-4 on the season and 2-0 in SCAC
play. They return to conference action on January 4th and 5th,
first hosting Colorado College and then the University of
Dallas.
Trinity went 3-2 over the holiday break,
splitting a pair of road games in California, and winning two out
of three at home to close out 2012. The Tigers defeated Redlands
77-66 on December 18, but fell 68-73 to Chapman the next night to
finish off a three-game trip on the West Coast. At the Trinity
Classic, the Tigers opened with a 69-61 win over Hardin-Simmons
– avenging a season-opening loss to the Cowgirls – then
lost 52-64 against Carthage. On New Year’s Eve, Trinity
wrapped up the month with a 72-48 victory over Texas Lutheran.
Trinity resumes SCAC play this weekend, hosting Dallas and Colorado
College on Friday and Sunday. The Tigers will then play five of
their next six games on the road, before entering the final month
of the season. Trinity is currently 2-0 in the SCAC.
To view the entire SCAC Hoops Weekly for Week 6,
click here.
