By JOHN BOHNENKAMP Mia Nicastro was among the top scorers in NCAA Division I women’s basketball play all season, so it was no surprise the Western Illinois senior was named the Ohio Valley Conference’s player of the year on Tuesday. … Continue reading Nicastro, Gravina And Brownfield Claim Top OVC Honors
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP IOWA CITY, Iowa — Ashley Sofilkanich stood near the Michigan basket, hands on hips, head down, a sign that she had enough of Iowa’s Ava Heiden. The Wolverines had called timeout, the sellout crowd of Carver-Hawkeye Arena … Continue reading IOWA 62, MICHIGAN 44: Heiden Owns Her Space With A ‘Stab And Twist’ Moment
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP MACOMB, Ill. — Experience matters. It’s why Western Illinois’ women’s basketball team wasn’t rattled at the challenge from Morehead State in the first three quarters of Saturday’s Ohio Valley Conference game at Western Hall. It’s why they knew how, with their lead in the OVC standings at stake and a chance to set up their biggest week of the season, to finish off the game. “We decided in the fourth quarter, it was going to be our game,” said forward Mallory Shetley. And so it was. The Leathernecks smothered Morehead State in the final 10 minutes to … Continue reading WIU 74, MOREHEAD STATE 53: Fury In The Fourth Quarter
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP MACOMB, Ill. — Mia Nicastro wasn’t happy. Western Illinois had let a 13-point lead turn into a two-point deficit at the end of the third quarter in Thursday’s game against Little Rock at Western Hall and Nicastro, … Continue reading WIU 84, LITTLE ROCK 73: Nicastro’s Fourth-Quarter Fury Keeps Leathernecks Rolling
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP Iowa’s women’s basketball team was going to have to sit on a three-game losing streak for six days, so coach Jan Jensen used the time to get the Hawkeyes to work on themselves. Jensen wanted to give … Continue reading IOWA 65, WASHINGTON 56: Hawkeyes Get Back To The Basics Of Winning
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP MACOMB, Ill. — The third game in a four-games-in-eight-days stretch for the Western Illinois’ women’s basketball team was never close, and the Leathernecks didn’t seem to mind. Their 93-49 win over Eastern Illinois on Tuesday at Western … Continue reading WIU 93, EASTERN ILLINOIS 49: Leathernecks Get An Easy One And Extend Their OVC Lead
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP IOWA CITY, Iowa — Jan Jensen doesn’t want to wait to play again. A three-game losing streak is gnawing at the Iowa women’s basketball coach, and she wants her players to feel a little bit of the … Continue reading MINNESOTA 91, IOWA 85: Losing Streak Makes The Clock Tick Louder
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP Raegan McCowan was passing the ball during Western Illinois’ warmups before Thursday’s game with Southeast Missouri State when teammate Addi Brownfield walked by her and playfully slapped her left arm. Then Brownfield realized what she had done. … Continue reading THE MONDAY TIPOFF: WIU’s McCowan Watches While Waiting For Elbow To Heal
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP MACOMB, Ill. — JD Gravina knows his team can wear out opponents. It was a message the Western Illinois women’s basketball coach gave to his team in Thursday’s game against Southeast Missouri State at Western Hall, and his players responded with a second-half fury to win 69-55. “I told our team, I think we’re the type of team that if we just keep playing aggressive, it’s hard for teams to keep up for 40 minutes,” Gravina said. The Leathernecks had a 10-0 run to end the third quarter, then had a 12-0 run in a three-minute stretch … Continue reading WIU 69, SEMO 55: Leathernecks Deliver In Second Half
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP Iowa’s women’s basketball team will head into a West Coast swing of two games that will mean plenty in the Big Ten standings dealing with the news that one of its starters will miss the rest of … Continue reading With McCabe Out, Hawkeyes Will Turn To Deal
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