Cardinals start Great Lakes Valley Conference play

Kyler Wooldridge- Staff Writer
12/2/11

The William Jewell women’s basketball team followed up their win against Buena Vista University on Nov. 12 by competing in the Winstead Reeves Classic on the campus of Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville. The Cardinals faced the host school as well as the William Penn University Lady Statesmen of Oskaloosa, Iowa. Jewell established an early 17-5 lead over the Lady Bearcats.  The Cardinals fended off a number of first half scoring runs by Northwest Missouri State to take a 39-27 into the locker room at halftime. The Bearcats refused to go quietly, however, eventually trimming Jewell’s lead to only four points. The Cardinals pulled away and won with a final score of 77-64. The leading scorer of the night was Cassy Nicolay, sophomore, who finished with a double-double by scoring 25 points and bringing in a game high of 13 rebounds Holly Switzer, junior, also added 16 points and 7 rebounds while  Ariel Smith, first-year, finished with 11 points.
In their next game, Jewell took on William Penn University. The Lady Cardinals and Lady Statesmen played neck and neck during a first half that included eight lead changes. Jewell shot 50 percent from the field in the first half and took a 31-30 lead into halftime. The Lady Cardinals pulled away in the second half, shooting a perfect 14/14 from the free throw line as they won their third straight game by the final score of 65-53. Nicolay once again led the game in points and rebounds with 18 and 13, respectively.

The women’s basketball team played their last contest before Thanksgiving break at home against Central Christian College of the Bible of Moberly on Nov. 22. The Saints hold dual affiliation with both theAssociation of Christian College Athletics (ACCA) and the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA). In the first half both teams swapped leads, and Central Christian trailed by only six going into halftime. Jewell was able to pull away in the second half by scoring ten unanswered points in the first few minutes. The Lady Cardinal’s defense was relentless with senior Katy Colby tallying a game high of five steals. Overall the Lady Cardinals forced 32 turnovers including 23 total steals against the Saints. With this victory, the women’s team remained 4-0, bringing an undefeated record into Great Lakes Valley Conference play.

While the women’s team has enjoyed success over the last few weeks, their male counterparts have not been so fortunate. On Nov. 18 the men’s team traveled to St. Joseph to compete in the Hillyard Tip-Off Classic against Missouri Western State University. The Cardinals lead for most of the game, but found themselves trailing late in the contest. Jewell trailed by only one point with 16 seconds remaining, but the Cardinals failed to make a key free throw, and several inbounds plays broke down as the Cardinals fell 65-64 to the Griffons on their home court. Nick Larson, senior, led the way with 23 points and 14 rebounds for Jewell. The next day the Cardinals played their second game of the tournament against Northwest Missouri State. The Bearcats jumped out to a quick 8-0 lead and never looked back. Northwest led 22-14 at the half and did not let up in the second half, winning by a final score of 49-37.

The Cardinals turned things around in their next game against Bible Baptist College in the Mabee Center on Nov. 22. Jewell started the game off with an 11-0 run and led by as many as 27 points at various times in the first half. The Patriots, who hail from Springfield, never recovered, and the chasm between them and the home team continued to widen in the second half. When it was all said and done the Cardinals were victorious by a score of 118-43. This win gave the men’s team a record of 2-2 on the young season.

Both the men’s and women’s basketball teams began their Great Lakes Valley Conference schedule at home on yestserday against the Hawks of Quincy University. The Jewell women lost with a score of 77-61, and the Cardinal men won with a score of 78-70.  Chris Uz, senior, led the way for the men’s team with a game-high 19 points. He shot five of seven from three. In the women’s game, Katlyn Wood, junior, paced the Cardinals with 17 points and a game-high 6 assists.

Both teams welcome University of Illinois-Springfield tomorrow. Women’s tip-off is at 1 p.m., with the men’s game following at 3:15 p.m.