Jan. 29, 2004

Box Score

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - Shooting 59.3 percent from the field in the second half, the Lewis University women's basketball team outscored Missouri-St. Louis 40-29 in the second stanza and gave the team a 76-65 victory over the visiting Riverwomen.

Lewis (13-6, 10-2 Great Lakes Valley Conference) extended its winning streak to seven games and set up a showdown for first place in the GLVC with Quincy on Saturday. The Flyers will host the Hawks (16-3, 10-2 GLVC) at 1 p.m. Jan. 31.

Even though UMSL came into the game 4-13 on the season, the Flyers were wary of the Riverwomen (4-14, 1-10 GLVC), especially after a claiming just a two-point victory in St. Louis Jan. 4. The teams played even at the break and the Flyers pulled away in the second half for the win.

"They did the same thing to us that they did in our first meeting," said Lewis head coach Lynn Plett. "They slow you down and make you play ugly and that's how it was tonight. We tried to pressure them and move the tempo, but we weren't successful early on. We had to be patient and play good position defense and we got that when we were able to pull away."

The Flyers built a 15-point lead in the first 11 minutes of the game, but UMSL fought back and tied the game at 36-all by halftime.

"We're not a team that runs away and buries its opponents," said Plett. "We've played well enough to win and that's been our strong point this season."

The teams played even for the first 10 minutes of the second half and UMSL led 50-49 with 9:50 to play. Lewis' Tracy Buchholz buried a 3-pointer that regained the lead 52-50 for the Flyers and the team never trailed again. Buchholz' basket sparked a 15-4 run that gave the Flyers a 10-point cushion with 4:25 to play. Following the run, the Riverwomen would draw no closer than seven points the rest of the way.

"We mixed up our defenses a lot in the second half and I think that made us focus more," said Plett. "In turn, we executed better on the offensive end."

One of the biggest factors in the win came from a player that didn't take a single shot, yet played 31 minutes. Freshman guard Brittney Diener tallied 10 assists, four rebounds and two steals and did not turn the ball over once.

"No turnovers and 10 assists?" said Plett. "It's kinda crazy to say, but she helped our offense immensely without even scoring."

On the receiving end of Diener's passes were Darcee Schmidt and Shante Glenn. Schmidt had team-highs of 17 points and nine rebounds, while Glenn posted 16 points, four assists and was 6-of-10 from the field.

Saturday's game against No. 11-ranked Quincy will be for sole possession of the league's top spot. It will also be the first meeting between the schools this season.

1/29/04