GREENWOOD, Ind. – The Great Midwest Athletic Conference schedule has officially launched as men’s and women’s teams around the league had their first glimpse of each other with about a third of the season already in the books.
The indoor campaign for men’s and women’s track and field was also ushered in and with the sport in just its second active season for the G-MAC, expect to see a consistent trend of one-year records continually being reset.
Congratulations to the G-MAC Athletes of the Week in men’s and women’s basketball, C.J. Blackwell (Kentucky Wesleyan) and Paige Baugher (Trevecca), along with the first selection of the indoor track and field weekly picks, Tevin Washington (Kentucky Wesleyan) and Bea Indurain (Ursuline).
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MEN'S BASKETBALL
Two teams emerged with a pair of conference wins right out of the gates as preseason favorite Kentucky Wesleyan (6-3, 2-0 G-MAC) and Trevecca (4-5, 2-0 G-MAC) both took care of business with victories on their G-MAC-opening road trips.
The G-MAC continues to challenge itself at the pinnacle of the national polls during competition with the most recent showcase featuring Alderson Broaddus against No. 6 and defending NCAA Division II champion Central Missouri on Monday.
This was just the most recent challenge from the men’s programs after Salem International was tested against No. 1 West Liberty and Cedarville versus now-No. 2 Bellarmine (ranked No. 5 when played).
The Battlers were buried with a deep 17-2 run to start the game against the Mules, but quickly gathered composure and whittled a seemingly insurmountable deficit to just a five-point margin with plenty of time to spare in the second half.
The showdown between the G-MAC and RMAC champions was a compelling matchup as the Battlers continue to round into midseason form with tough defense. Shooting percentages were ultimately the difference against UCM as AB made the long trip to Warrensburg.
Alderson Broaddus (6-2, 1-0 G-MAC) triumphed against Davis & Elkins (2-5, 0-1 G-MAC) to begin the league schedule while remaining idle on Thursday. AB had won six of its last seven prior to facing Central Missouri. Devin Colston had started the game a perfect 6-for-6 shooting and ended with 18 points.
For lack of better verbage, G-MAC Athlete of the Week C.J. Blackwell of Kentucky Wesleyan was ‘in the zone’ against Ohio Valley and Salem International. Blackwell erupted for 41 points on ridiculous 15-of-18 shooting in a reserve role to help carry the Panthers past OVU during a close four-point win in Vienna.
Blackwell was at it again on Saturday against Salem International as he finished with 19 and shot just under 72 percent on the week.
Byron Sanford and the Trojans of Trevecca are rolling, winners of three straight after beating the same OVU and SIU opponents on the road. Sanford lit up Salem International for 28 points and collected 17 more vs. the Fighting Scots.
Sanford is now fifth in the conference in scoring at 16.3 points per game. He currently leads the league in assists per game (4.7 apg) and steals (3.0 spg),
Saturday had five games on the slate, including non-conference matchups with Cedarville (2-7, 0-0 G-MAC) at Lewis and Washington Adventist visiting Central State (5-4, 0-0 G-MAC) for a tournament in Wilberforce.
CU’s leading scorer Marcus Reineke carved out 32 points on 11-of-18 shooting against Lewis, including five made baskets beyond the arc. He is now second in the league in scoring by 0.01 points behind OVU’s Darryl Walker (18.2 ppg).
While the Yellow Jackets would have liked to fare better against a strong 6-1 Flyers’ squad, the Marauders carved out the first of two out-of-conference wins. CSU also beat LeMoyne-Owen last night behind the fifth double-double for Raheem Lemons.
Lemons is a rebounding machine, ranking first in the G-MAC (10.1 rpg), and is also eighth in the league in scoring (14.1 ppg).
Davis & Elkins (3-5, 0-1 G-MAC) toppled Virginia-Lynchburg in a lopsided win last night as Shauib Kamara and Kevin Bracy-Davis both scored over 20 points. The Senators torched the nets for nearly 68 percent shooting.
OVU (0-5, 0-2 G-MAC) kept the final margin of defeat to single digits against KWC and Trevecca, but along with Salem International (0-7, 0-2 G-MAC), remain in search of their first win this season.
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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
A similar setup is unfolding early in the G-MAC standings after Kentucky Wesleyan (4-4, 2-0) and preseason favorite Trevecca (4-4, 2-0 G-MAC) also won their respective road contests.
Each team played at least one conference game as Cedarville (8-1, 1-0 G-MAC) sustained its blistering start, Davis & Elkins (5-1, 1-0 G-MAC) won its G-MAC opener and Ursuline (1-7, 1-1 G-MAC) split to earn its first win of the year.
Cedarville continues to carve out a body of work that will be hard for the regional committee to overlook if the Lady Jackets can continue their strong play in the conference schedule.
The Lady Jackets have won six straight, including an impressive home win against Indianapolis on Saturday. Raegan Ryan was a perfect 21-of-21 at the free-throw line, increasing already impressive all-around shooting percentages across the board.
Ursuline bested Central State (2-5, 0-1 G-MAC) in a tight overtime battle as Makayla Rosselot finished with 32 points, five rebounds and five assists. The Marauders boast two of the G-MAC’s top four scorers in Amanda Pierce (17.3 ppg) and Iniquia Snell (14.4 ppg).
After starting 0-4, Alderson Broaddus (2-5, 0-1 G-MAC) has won two of its last three games, toppling Washington Adventist and Waynesburg. Rachel Ashley was 9-of-14 from the field for the Battlers as she scored 26 points against Waynesburg and now quietly ranks sixth in scoring.
Jordanne Gambill led Kentucky Wesleyan with a season-high 23 points against Salem International. She also paced a balanced team scoring effort with 10 points against Ohio Valley.
KWC is currently in the midst of a four-game winning streak and Gambill ranks among the league’s top scorers with 14.1 points per game.
The G-MAC Athlete of the Week came from Trevecca as junior guard Paige Baugher had three strong games. Baugher did it all with scoring, passing, rebounding and defending, for the Trojans, who have won three straight.
Salem International (0-9, 0-2 G-MAC) and Ohio Valley (0-7, 0-2 G-MAC) continue to scrap while trying to grab their first wins of the season.
Women's Basketball:
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MEN'S TRACK & FIELD
Alderson Broaddus, Central State, Cedarville and Kentucky Wesleyan, all competed during opening weekend of the indoor season.
Kentucky Wesleyan freshman and G-MAC Athlete of the Week Tevin Washington made an immediate splash by shattering the 60-meter dash record (school and conference record) at the Jerry England Alumni Open in Indianapolis. He ran the finals in 6.93 seconds.
Washington was also fourth in the 200-meter dash and ran in the 4x400-meter relay for the Panthers.
Cedarville’s Matthew Bird set a new school record in the 300-meter run at 36.54 seconds, breaking a mark set back in 2007. CU also won the 800 meters behind Tim De Jong and the 4x400 relay group also finished first in Tiffin.
In Morgantown, home of the West Virginia Mountaineers, Alderson Broaddus' Nathaniel Kast blazed his way to 14th in the 200-meter run while Jacob Goble set a school record in shot put as he finished second. Goble also placed sixth in the weight throw.
Central State entered in the Findlay Oiler Open and Romario McKenzie ran to the top finish in the 300-meter event while competing against six other schools.
WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD
Ursuline competed in back-to-back events on Friday/Saturday as senior G-MAC Athlete of the Week Bea Indurain came out strong. Indurain won the 60-meter hurdles at the Youngstown State Icebreaker, set a new school record and provisionally qualified for nationals with a time of 8.84 seconds.
She also set a new school record in the long jump. At the Spartan Holiday Classic the next day, Indurain ran the fastest 55-meter hurdles time in school history and cleared 10.63 meters to win the triple jump for another new school standard.
Christle Pendleton led Central State’s effort at the Oiler Open with a first-place effort in the 60-meter dash, third-place finish in the 300-meter run and helped the Marauders come in third in the 4x400-meter relay.
AB's women recorded six of the top-20 times in the 200-meter dash at the Marty Pushkin Classic led by Demi DeGraef in a time of 28.18. DeGraef and a trio of Battlers then combined to win the 4x400-meter relay. In field events, Jessica Slaughter set a new school record in the weight throw and Kari Ibson was 11th in weight throw and 13th in shot put, respectively.
At the Tiffin meet, Cedarville’s Anna Pomento established a new school record in the shot put. KWC was led in Indianapolis by Elizabeth Gordon (fourth in 60-meter hurdles) and Crystal Hopkins (sixth in shot put, eighth in weight throw).
****With the 2013-14 indoor and outdoor track season being the first for the G-MAC, all top performances from last season established records for the conference. As we enter the first weekend of the 2014-15 season we have had some early performances that have set new records. An official records list will be posted on G-MACsports.com early next week and you can also track all the top performances from last year and this year on G-MACsports.com.****