Lady Owls basketball team triumphs in opener

Four players reached double figures Tuesday night, helping the William Woods University Lady Owls basketball team launch its season with an 81-69 victory over Missouri Valley College at Anderson Arena.

Junior guard Marissa Webb - a transfer from Three Rivers Community College - was 5-of-6 from the field and 2-of-3 from 3-point range in putting up a team-high 15 points in her William Woods University debut. Senior guard Blake French was next with 14 points and junior guards Kendra Vernatti and Julia Wells had 11 and 10, respectively.

The Lady Owls overcame 22 turnovers and shot 46 percent (27-of-59) as a team, including 54 percent (7-of-13) from behind the arc. Meanwhile, William Woods scored 30 points off 24 turnovers by Missouri Valley College.

Sophomore center Kennedy Volkart also grabbed seven rebounds to spark the Lady Owls to a 41-37 edge on the boards.

"Early games you got to win ugly, got to do it with defense and effort, as we weren't pretty at times on offense ...," William Woods head coach Dan Chapla said. "I think we are better than that, but we found a way to make it difficult for Missouri Valley tonight."

The Lady Owls broke a 25-all tie by responding with a 10-2 run over the final 4 minutes, 57 seconds of the first half to go in front to stay. Senior guard Dennisha Rice knocked down a 3-pointer with :58 to go, sending William Woods into halftime with a 35-27 advantage.

The Lady Owls gradually extended their lead in the second half and were up by as many as 19 points.

TaLaya Earls countered with a game-high 25 points to lead three players in double figures for Missouri Valley (0-2), which shot 40 percent (26-of-65) from the field. Kelsey Griffin provided 12 points and Andress Augusto finished with 10.

William Woods competes at the Cougar Classic in Columbia this weekend, opening with a matchup against University of the Cumberlands (Kentucky) at 2 p.m. Friday. The Lady Owls then face Bethel (Kansas) College at 2 p.m. Saturday.