The Saint Louis University women’s basketball team rounded out a mixed-result week on Wednesday with a close defeat at the hands of Temple, following a decisive victory against Fordham this past Sunday.
Last Sunday, the Bauman-Eberhardt Center was rocked by the Bills, who crushed the Fordham Rams by 20 points, 90-70.
The game was tight from the get-go, with the Rams trailing the Bills by only three points. Senior Rachel Diener started an eight-point run, with help from freshmen Maggie Hennegan, Amy Klotz and Theresa Lisch, who all helped the Bills stretch their lead to 26-15 with nine minutes left in the first half.
The Rams fought back with an 8-2 run, but Lisch stopped the run with two free throws. The Bills responded with a 9-0 run of their own, followed by two successful free throws by both junior Hayley Leake and freshman Amanda Kemezys. Kemenzys went on to score two more baskets, and Hennegan added two more free throws, putting the Bills up 41-29 at the half.
The Rams spent much of the beginning of the second half chipping away at the Billiken lead. With 14 minutes left in the game, the Rams trailed by only 11 points.
But senior Tyler McIlwraith came in and shot the Bills up with a 9-2 run. After two quick free throws from Klotz, McIlwraith went on another run, scoring seven straight points. On the next possession, McIlwraith converting two more free throws off a hard foul, giving the Bills a 58-40 lead with a little more than 12 minutes left in the game.
Fordham, however, was not ready to go in the locker room quite yet. They fought back and managed to come within 13 points. But the Bills were ready to send them back to New York, and went on a seven-point scoring run.
From that point on, the Bills dominated the Rams with baskets form Kemezys, McIlwraith and Hennegan. The Bills ended the game with a solid 20-point win, 90-70.
Several of the Bills were noted for their exceptional game. Kemezys shot an excellent nine of 13 with a career high of 22 points. She also brought home six offensive rebounds to aid the team.
Hennegan added 14 to the effort and also managed 17 rebounds, the team’s highest single-game rebound mark in seven years.
McIlwraith continued her high scoring streak by tallying 19 points and a personal record of nine assists, all of which-combined with a fantastic performance versus St. Bonaventure-earned her the Atlantic 10 Co-Player of the Week honor, the first Bill to be so honored. Lisch also had a great game, scoring 14 points and hitting 100 percent of her free throws.
After a great game versus Fordham, the Billikens suffered a heartbreak on Thursday versus the Owls of Temple.
The Owls stared out strong, but the Bills fought back with consecutive baskets from McIlwraith and Kemezys, bringing the Bills to within six, just five minutes into the game. The Owls responded with nine unanswered points, until Lisch drained a free throw and a lay-up to keep the Bills close. Once more, however, the Owls responded with a 7-0 run until Lisch broke their streak with a three-pointer to send the Bills into the locker room at halftime, trailing 40-23.
The second half started with a 7-2 run from the Owls, but baskets and free throws from Hennegan and freshman Katie Paganelli managed to cut the Owls’ lead to just 11 points. Lisch next sank a basket to bring the Bills to within seven with nine minutes to go.
The Owls fought back, though, with 12 straight points, putting themselves up by double digits once more. From this, the Bills could not recover and lost, 76-64.
Paganelli and Lisch led the Bills with 18 and 17 points, respectively. Kemezys contributed 12 points and seven rebounds.
The Bills are now 11-14 for the season and 3-9 in the Atlantic 10. They host George Washington on Sunday at 1 p.m. in the Bauman Eberhardt Center.
