The No. 3 men’s tennis team defeated NCAA Division II No. 19 Drury University 5-4 Feb. 12 at the Creve Coeur Racquet Club in Creve Coeur, Mo. The victory over Drury was the Bears first in four tries under head coach Roger Follmer.
Junior Gary Parizher clinched the victory for the Bears with a 6-3 victory in the third set at No. 3 singles.
The Bears are 2-0 this season against NCAA Division II institutions.
The team returns on action Friday, Feb. 24, against No. 11 University of Chicago at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in Saint Peter, Minn.
Men’s basketball improves to 17-5
The men’s basketball team improved its overall record to 17-5 with a pair of home victories last weekend at the WU Field House. The Bears held on to sole possession of first place in the University Athletic Association (UAA) standings with a 78-60 win over Case Western Reserve University Feb. 10. Sophomore Chris Klimek scored a team-high 17 points and had six rebounds, while senior Dylan Richter had 15 points and tied a career-high with six steals.
Senior Alex Toth had 12 points, sophomore Tim Cooney chipped in with 11 points, and sophomore Alan Aboona filled up the stat sheet with 11 points, a career-high 10 rebounds and six assists. All five starters scored in double figures for the first time all season.
The Bears celebrated Senior Day with an 88-79 victory over Carnegie Mellon University Feb. 12. Prior to the game, WUSTL honored its three seniors who played their final regular-season home game: Dylan Richter, Jake Seymour and Alex Toth. The Class of 2012 has compiled an overall record of 83-22 (.790) in their four seasons on the Danforth Campus, with two NCAA Tournament appearances, the 2009 UAA Championship and the 2009 NCAA Division III National Championship.
Richter led the Bears with 21 points, as he increased his career points total to 1,045. Toth added 18 points, five boards and three steals, while Cooney and Klimek added 15 points each.
WUSTL (17-5, 9-2 UAA) extended its lead in the UAA to two with three games to play. The Bears begins a three-game road trip to end the season at Brandeis University (12-10, 6-5 UAA) on Friday, Feb. 17.
Women’s basketball picks up two wins at home
The No. 12 women’s basketball team ended its regular-season home schedule with wins over Case Western Reserve University and Carnegie Mellon University over the weekend.
In a 59-50 win over Case Western Reserve Feb. 10, the Bears rallied from a 7-point halftime deficit. Trailing by one midway through the second half, the team went on a 16-4 run, including nine points by freshman Alyssa Johanson, to take control of the game. Freshman Melissa Gilkey recorded the second double-double of her career with 12 points and a career-high 14 rebounds to lead the Bears.
Johanson, senior Dani Hoover and freshman Maddy Scheppers each finished with 11 points.
On Feb. 12, the seniors made the most of their final home game by leading the Bears to an 86-74 win over Carnegie Mellon. The Bears led by just three (36-33) at halftime, but started the second half with a 20-2 run to break the game open.
Senior Brianne Monahan scored a career-high 16 points and equaled her season-high with six rebounds, while Hoover and senior Claire Schaeperkoetter added 10 points each. Hoover also pulled down a team-best nine rebounds and added four assists. Senior Bethany Morrison dished out a career-high 11 assists, while Schaeperkoetter also tallied a career-high with six assists.
Hoover, Monahan, Morrison and Schaeperkoetter improved their four-year record at WUSTL to 98-17 overall and 45-8 in University Athletic Association (UAA) play.
The Bears (18-4, 8-3 UAA) hit the road for their final three regular-season games. The team faces Brandeis University Friday, Feb. 17, followed by a visit to New York University on Feb. 19.
Monmouth track meet yields five individual winners
The men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams had five individuals win their respective events at the Fighting Scot Invitational at Monmouth College Feb 11.
Senior Elizabeth Phillips posted the fifth-fastest time in NCAA Division III this season to win the women’s mile by 19 seconds. Phillips’ time of 4:57.90 was a season-best and just two seconds shy of her own school record in the event.
Freshman Lucy Cheadle won the women’s 5,000 meters with a time of 17:22.79, the third-fastest time in school history. Her time was nearly 18 seconds faster than the runner-up and moved her into 11th on the Division III performance list for the season.
The WUSTL women also added two field-event champions at the meet. Sophomore Jasmine Williams won the high jump with a career-best clearance of 1.68 meters. The mark moved her into second all-time at WUSTL and a tie for sixth in Division III this season. Sophomore Anna Etherington won the women’s pole vault with a mark of 3.69 meters.
Sophomore Kevin Sparks was the lone event winner for the men, leading a first- through fourth-place sweep for the Bears in the men’s 5,000. Sparks won the event with a season-best time of 14:49.47.
Both teams return to action on Friday, Feb. 17, at the Illinois College Alumni Classic in Jacksonville, Ill.