Baldwin City, Kan.–Just two days after holding on at home, the William Penn women’s basketball team did not have enough in the tank to run with #21 Baker in a 71-46 Heart of America Athletic Conference loss Monday.
The Statesmen (7-8, 4-4 Heart) never led in a matchup that witnessed them being outshot 43.1%-29.4%. WPU did hold a 45-40 margin on the glass, but the Wildcats (11-4, 5-3 Heart) still managed to post a 16-14 edge in second-chance points.
The visitors, who trailed 35-13 at the break, could not muster a comeback in the final 20 minutes of action. The navy and gold also succumbed to 24 turnovers, which led to a 23-7 mark in points off turnovers for Baker.
Alyssa Phillips (Jr., Gurnee, Ill., Communications) had a big evening, accounting for nearly half of her squad’s points, finishing with 22 on 7-for-13 shooting. She also added eight rebounds and two steals. She could have tallied many more, however, but had issues at the line with an 8-for-18 performance (WPU was 13-for-31 overall).
Vashti Nwagbaraocha (Fr., Milwaukee, Wis., Exercise Science) joined Phillips in double figures with 13 points in addition to eight rebounds; the freshman assisted twice as well. Kadejah Young (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn., Physical Education) matched Phillips with a pair of thefts.
“Unfortunately, we did not compete tonight and we are not good enough yet to not compete every time out,” Head Coach Willie Scott said.
Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa Thursday to host Central Methodist (Mo.) in Heart play at 5:30 p.m.
Story provided by Wade Steinlage
