Women’s basketball defeats Augustana
Senior forward Kathryn Berger scored 18 points and senior guard Alex Hoover added 17 points to lead the No. 7 women’s basketball team to a 78-48 home victory over Augustana College Nov. 28 as the Bears improved their season record to 3-1.
Berger was 7 of 14 from the field and tied her career-high with four three-pointers, while Hoover hit 8 of 12 shots from the field. Freshman forward Jordan Rettig added nine points and a career-high 13 rebounds in her third-career start, while sophomore Kristin Anda and junior Brianne Monahan added six points apiece off the bench. Freshman Lucy Montgomery had a career-high six assists in the victory.
WUSTL shot 48.6 percent (35-72) in the victory, and outrebounded Augustana, 53-35. Kristen Fox (14 points) and Molly Etheridge (12 points) scored in double figures for Augustana, which dropped to 0-5 overall.
WUSTL hosts the 10th Annual McWilliams Classic Friday and Saturday, Dec. 3-4, at the Washington University Field House. The Bears take on the University of New England at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 3, followed by a match-up against Ohio Wesleyan University or Elmhurst College at 2 p.m. or 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4.
Men’s basketball drops road games
The No. 20 men’s basketball team dropped a pair of road games and saw its overall record drop to 2-3.
The Bears opened the week with a 78-55 loss at No. 24 Augustana College Nov. 22. Senior Spencer Gay led the Bears with 16 points, while freshman Tim Cooney added a career-high 10 points on 5 of 6 shooting at the foul line. The Bears shot 37.3 percent (19-51) in the loss, and were outrebounded, 42-26.
On Nov. 28, Hanover College’s Drake Hendricks buried two free-throws with four seconds remaining to break a tie as his team held on for a 56-52 win over the Bears. Down nine with 3:35 to play, the Bears outscored Hanover 9-0 in the next 2:48 to knot the score at 52-52 following a basket by junior Dylan Richter.
WUSTL connected on 5 of 6 free-throws during the 9-0 run. Hanover called timeout following the bucket by Richter, but a steal by junior Alex Toth with 27 seconds left gave WUSTL the final possession.
The Bears did not get off a shot, as Hendricks stole the ball from Richter and then senior Caleb Knepper was whistled for an intentional foul with four seconds left. Hendricks knocked down both free-throws, and Grant Pangallo followed with two more at the charity stripe to make the final score 56-52.
Gay led the Bears with 17 points and eight rebounds, while Richter added a season-high 11 points and sophomore point guard Ben Hoener had a career-best 10 points.
WUSTL shot 34 percent (17-50) from the field in the loss, and held Hanover to a 32.8 percent (20-61) clip.
The Bears host the 27th Annual Lopata Classic this Friday and Saturday, Dec. 3-4, at the WU Field House. WUSTL plays Tsinghua University from Beijing, China, at 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 3, followed by a game against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4.
Rodman named AVCA assistant coach of the year
Assistant volleyball coach Charles Rodman was named the 2010 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division III National Assistant Coach of the Year.
Rodman has been head coach Rich Luenemann’s top assistant since 2005 and has undertaken a number of roles for the Bears during that time. Over the past two seasons, Rodman has worked primarily with the team’s ball control unit, where he has mentored two-time AVCA first-team all-Americans and 2009 AVCA Division III National Freshman of the Year Kelly Pang.
Since Rodman joined the WUSTL program, the Bears have been a perennial national championship contender, making six-straight appearances in the NCAA tournament, advancing to the NCAA semifinal four times, playing in three national championship matches and winning two national titles (2007, 2009).
Over that six-year span, WUSTL has posted an overall-record of 207-24 (.896).
Rodman will be formally presented with the award at the 2010 Jostens Coaches Honors Luncheon Thursday, Dec. 16m in Kansas, City, Mo. The luncheon is held in conjunction with the 2010 AVCA annual convention.