Southwestern College Collegian

Issue date: 2/27/08 Section: Collegian Front Page

Kenna Corley/Collegian photographerKara Beal, senior guard, defends a McPherson College player Feb. 21 in Stewart Field House. Southwestern won 62-56 against the Bulldogs and finished second in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference.

Kenna Corley/Collegian photographerBailey Silvers, freshman forward, pivots inside the post on her way to a jumpshot over a McPherson defender Feb. 21. The Builders defeated McPherson 62-56. [Click to enlarge]

Experience has helped propel the Lady Moundbuilders through season play and into a second-place Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament seed. With six seniors on the team, their leadership is especially needed in the next few games. The women will play Bethel at 7 p.m. tonight in Stewart Field House. A win would mean another game at 2 p.m. on Saturday at home. A loss would mean the end of the season. The only loss the Lady Builders could possibly have and still make it to the national tournament is if they happened to lose to Sterling College, who is already tournament-bound, in the championship game on Monday. However, looking ahead is taboo at this point in the season. The women are simply looking to win tonight for the third time this season against Bethel. Dave Denly, women's head basketball coach, said, "Any team we play we'll have beaten them twice. Beating them the third time in a year is not impossible, but it becomes a lot harder." Jordan Jarnagin, sophomore guard, said, "I think our team has a lot of confidence on the road or at home, but it does help being at home. It just makes you feel good going into the game being in your own house." The women played in two home games last week, beating McPherson College 62-56 on Feb. 21 and then winning against the University of Saint Mary 74-54 on Feb. 23, which was Senior Night for the team. "McPherson was kind of a weird game," said Denly. "It was a game of runs. We were never really able to get it past that small lead, but it was a legiate Athletic Conference tournament. They will play fifth seed Sterling College at 7 p.m. tomorrow at home. Winning will allow them to play the winner of the Ottawa University vs. Bethel or Bethany match-up, but they would need to win yet another to advance to national tournament play. However, one loss and everything's finished. "I think our team understands that when you get to this point of the season, it's win or go home," said Doug Hall, head men's basketball coach. "Usually these games are highly competitive." On Feb. 21, the Builders won a home game against McPherson College 63-54, and then came back on Saturday to beat the University of Saint Mary 62-48. After a three-game slump at the beginning of February, the men have come back to win five of their last six games-a good sign, said Hall, that the team may be reaching its peak at the right point in the season. That peak could lead to a tournament birth. David King, sophomore forward, said, "Post season has always been exciting for me. It's like getting another chance. Everyone's trying harder, though, so the margin for error's very slim. You just have to go out and play your hardest." Justin Diggles, junior guard, said, "It made us want to become more focused and concentrate on each game at a time as it came about, because we knew we needed to make our plays as the tournament came around. You get to redeem yourself in the tournament. If you bring your A game, you still have a chance to go to nationals. We've got to take one game at a time, but hopefully we'll slowly but surely make our way there." Paige Carswell is a freshman majoring in communication. You may e-mail her at paige.carswell@sckans.edu. 2/21/08 McPherson College (56) Bratcher 6-11 6-8 19, Pegram 3-4 2-3 8, Brewer 5-18 0-2 10, Woody 5-13 3-5 14, Coberly 0-7 0-0 0, Porter 1-3 0-0 2, Plowman 0-0 2-2 2, Sharp 0-1 1-4 1, Fiorenzi 0-6 0-0 0, Totals 20-63 14-24 56. Southwestern College (62) Hartfield 6-7 1-6 13, Beal 5-8 6-6 18, Colclasure 1-2 0-0 3, Wilson 3-11 1-3 7, Harvey 1-4 0-0 2, Maxwell 1-6 0-0 3, Jarnagin 1-5 2-5 4, Gandy 2-5 2-3 6, Gray 1-5 0-0 2, Silvers 1-4 2-2 4, Totals 22-57 14-25 62. McPherson 28 28_56 Southwestern 33 29_62 3-Point Goals - McPherson 2-15 (Bratcher 1-2, Brewer 0-5, Woody 1-5, Coberly 0-1, Porter 0-2), Southwestern 4-15 (Beal 2-4, Colclasure 1-1, Harvey 0-1, Maxwell 1-4, Jarnagin 0-3, Gray 0-1, Silvers 0-1). Fouled Out - Southwestern (Silvers). Rebounds - McPherson 51 (Bratcher 12), Southwestern 41 (Wilson 12). Assists - McPherson 5 (Brewer, Woody 2), Southwestern 10 (Gandy 6). Total Fouls - McPherson 18, Southwestern 19. Technical - McPherson (Pegram 2). A - 400. 2/23/08 University of St. Mary (54) Heim 1-5 3-6 5, Leonard 7-12 2-2 18, Jacobs 3-11 0-0 7, Mireles 1-5 2-4 4, Gillespie 4-13 4-4 15, Berger 0-1 0-0 0, Summers 0-2 1-2 1, Lund 0-1 0-0 0, Shea 0-1 1-2 1, Packham 0-0 1-2 1, Garcia 1-3 0-0 2, Totals 17-54 14-22 54. Southwestern College (74) Larsen 2-5 0-0 4, Beal 4-12 0-0 10, Colclasure 2-10 0-0 6, Wilson 2-8 0-3 7, Harvey 0-1 0-0 0, Hartfield 7-10 8-16 22, Maxwell 1-5 1-2 4, Jarnagin 2-6 2-4 7, Gandy 1-4 3-3 5, Gray 1-4 1-3 3, Poynter 1-1 0-0 3, Silvers 0-0 1-2 1, Tyree 1-1 0-0 2, Totals 24-67 19-35 74. St. Mary 21 33_54 Southwestern 20 54_74 3-Point Goals - St. Mary 6-16 (Leonard 2-2, Jacobs 1-6, Mireles 0-1, Gillespie 3-5, Summers 0-1, Lund 0-1), Southwestern 7-25 (Larsen 0-1, Beal 2-7, Colclasure 2-8, Harvey 0-1, Maxwell 1-4, Jarnagin 1-2, Gray 0-1, Poynter 1-1). Fouled Out - None. Rebounds - St. Mary 40 (Leonard 10), Southwestern 54 (Hartfield 15). Assists - St. Mary 9 (Heim, Jacobs 3), Southwestern 13 (Wilson, Gandy 3). Total Fouls - St. Mary 24, Southwestern 18. Technical - None. A - 200.

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