Free throws were the difference as the Lady Owls shot 81 percent (26-of-32) from the line to win their fifth straight by edging the Lady Pirates in Saturday's AMC victory at Anderson Arena.
The precision at the line helped William Woods University (13-7, 10-4 American Midwest Conference) overcome a woeful shooting effort from the field. The Lady Owls were held to 34 percent (17-of-50) overall and a shaky 11 percent (2-of-18) from 3-point range.
With William Woods' offense stalled, Park University (4-13, 4-10) jumped to an early 20-11 advantage in the first quarter and maintained a 32-23 advantage at halftime.
After the break, though, the Lady Owls returned the favor defensively as they limited the Lady Pirates to just seven points in the third quarter. Finally able to get in transition, sophomore guard Kaycee Gerald provided 10 of her game-high 16 points during the stretch as William Woods possessed a 45-39 lead.
Park quickly responded with six unanswered points at the outset of the fourth quarter to pull even. Sophomore guard Peyton Greenlee moved the Lady Owls back ahead 51-48 with 7 minutes left in the game as she hit William Woods' two 3s on back-to-back possessions.
Still, the Lady Pirates refused to go away as they eventually went in front 55-54 with 3:45 remaining. The Lady Owls buckled down and took the lead for the final time after senior forward Hannah Bland and junior guard Bailey Rollins nailed consecutive baskets in the paint to make it 60-57 with :34 to go.
After Park made it a one-point guard, senior forward Jasmine Brown calmly knocked down both of her free throws with :04 left to preserve William Woods' win.
Greenlee finished with 12 points as the only other player to reach double figures for the Lady Owls. Bland grabbed a team-high eight rebounds as William Woods was edged on the boards 40-38.
Deja Johnson-Ford and Jenae Rowe tallied 15 points apiece for the Lady Pirates, who shot just 35 percent (20-of-58) from the field. Park struggled at the foul line, making only 57 percent (12-of-21) of its attempts.
The Lady Owls go to St. Louis for an AMC contest against Missouri Baptist University at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. William Woods defeated the Lady Spartans 73-64 on Nov. 30 in Fulton.