GREENWOOD, Ind. – The 2014-15 Great Midwest Athletic Conference men’s and women’s basketball campaigns have reached a crossroads for some and postseason aspirations are starting round into focus as we cross the halfway point in the league schedules.
Men’s and women’s track and field indoor competition is also heating up with the G-MAC Championships serving as their ultimate platform to battle it out in late February for conference glory.
School records and conference records continue to fall and provisional and automatic qualifying times are within reach for these student-athletes.
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Recent Results - Composite Schedule
MEN'S BASKETBALL
A showdown pitting Kentucky Wesleyan (15-5, 5-2 G-MAC) and then-league leading Alderson Broaddus (12-6, 5-2 G-MAC) in Owensboro on was on full display over the weekend, swinging the pendulum of momentum in favor of the Panthers over the halfway point in the conference schedule.
The Panthers clamped down defensively in the second half, stifling the Battlers to just 16 points to pull into a tie for first with AB at the top of the league standings at 5-2.
It may have been an opportunity missed for Alderson Broaddus, but the elevated competition continues to show through in the league. Any team can seemingly beat another on a given night and it remains increasingly difficult to pull off a regular-season sweep.
The Battlers were winners of five straight before falling to KWC and will be in prime position to rebound with favorable home dates this week against Ohio Valley and Salem International.
Forming another tie in the standings (for third) is Cedarville (7-12, 4-2 G-MAC) and Central State (12-8, 4-2 G-MAC). The Yellow Jackets beat Ohio Valley by 10 points and held off a hard-charging effort from Salem International. Cedarville’s Austin Pickett had 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting and he was one of six players in double figures against OVU.
Central State stormed past Salem International by 20 before suffering the home setback vs. Ohio Valley. The Marauders also fell victim earlier this week at the buzzer against rival Kentucky State.
Ohio Valley (5-10, 4-3 G-MAC) was able to celebrate its second G-MAC Athlete of the Week following the exploits of do-it-all guard Darryl Walker. Walker, a product of Indianapolis close to the league office, was dynamic in averaging 27 points and eight rebounds in a pair of games.
Walker can shoot it from deep, penetrate into the lane to make shots in traffic and finish on the break -- a collection of skills that have him currently as the conference’s top scorer and third-leading rebounder.
OVU fell to Cedarville, but rebounded in a big way, toppling Central State in Wilberforce.
Trevecca Nazarene (8-10, 4-3 G-MAC) is tied with Ohio Valley for fifth. The top six teams will advance to the G-MAC Championship at the regular-season champion’s home site, meaning there is still time for Davis & Elkins (5-12, 1-6 G-MAC) and Salem International (2-14, 0-7 G-MAC) to force their way back into the mix.
TNU struggled against Alderson Broaddus, but salvaged the weekly split vs. D&E with both games in Nashville. The Senators are trying to stop what has turned out to be a six-game slide and will welcome Ohio Valley and SIU to Elkins this week.
Salem International’s home schedule is over and the Tigers will embark on an eight-game road stretch to conclude the regular season.
Men's Basketball:
Composite Schedule |
Overall Statistics |
Standings
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Cedarville (17-2, 8-0) is on the cusp of breaking through the top 25 teams in the country, garnering more votes for the third consecutive week in the USA Today Sports DII Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll.
Kentucky Wesleyan (11-6, 7-1 G-MAC) has won three straight conference matchups to remain in the race. During the winning streak, sophomore forward Jennifer Walker-Crawford has continued to perform, averaging 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Cedarville’s Kayla Linkous captured her second G-MAC Athlete of the Week award. Linkous has jumped to sixth in scoring and is now third in field goal percentage shooting 52.3 percent.
The talented junior is second in the conference in free throw percentage. Cedarville will look to non-conference opponent Wilberforce before getting right back into conference action versus Central State (6-12, 3-5 G-MAC) this week.
CSU had a tough matchup this week against rival Kentucky State, snapping a three-game win streak. Iniquia Snell has averaged just over 18 points per game while dropping nearly five dimes before the Lady Marauders take on Cedarville this coming Saturday.
Despite dropping its two matchups this past week, Davis & Elkins (8-8, 4-4 G-MAC) remains fourth place in the conference. Sharmaine Baker, the conference leader in scoring (19.7 ppg) and offensive rebounds (62) will lead the Lady Senators in two big home games this weekend.
Trevecca Nazarene (9-9, 6-2 G-MAC) has won three of its past four before heading to Ursuline (3-16, 2-6 G-MAC). Christina Curtner is red hot as she put up 21 points with nine assists and five rebounds against D&E.
Alderson-Broaddus (5-12, 3-5 G-MAC) and Ohio Valley (4-13, 3-5 G-MAC) will meet up this weekend as the picture in the current three-way tie for fifth place with Central State should become more clear.
Salem International (0-20, 0-8 G-MAC) continues to search for its first win of the season. Seven of the last eight games for the Tigers will be on the road.
Women's Basketball:
Composite Schedule |
Overall Statistics |
Standings
MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD
Freshman Tori Abdul led the way for the Ursuline Arrows this past weekend at the North Coast Indoor Open as she provisionally qualified for the NCAA 400m race after a 56.95 second time, and was named G-MAC Athlete of the Week.
Joining Abdul with a provisional time was senior Bea Indurain as she qualified for the 60-meter hurdles posting a time of 8.78 to beat the Ursuline school record. Indurain also finished third in the 60-meter dash.
In the Findlay Classic, Christle Pendleton of Central State wrote her name in the G-MAC record book again this past week for the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.88 seconds. She claimed second all-time earlier this season.
Alderson-Broaddus participated in the Youngstown Invitational this weekend and shattered four different school records. Erin Brown tied her 500-meter record by posting a time of 1:27.05. Also a member of the 4x400, Brown paced the team as they set a new AB record of 10:44.36 in the relay. Jessica Slaughter recorded an 11.54-meter toss to beat the school record in the weight throw.
For the men, Jacob Goble beat his own record with a 12.94m toss in the shot put and last week’s athlete of the week Brian Scott finished ninth in the triple jump.
Cedarville took part in the Indianapolis Greyhound Classic this past weekend. Joe Bernard finished second in the 400-meter dash with a time of 52.05 seconds, putting him fourth all-time in the G-MAC.
G-MAC Men’s Athlete of the Week Andre Klaasen finished seventh for Cedarville in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.16 seconds, resulting in a fourth-place tie in the G-MAC records. For the Lady Jackets, Carsyn Koch won the mile run with a time of 5:14.76.
Kentucky Wesleyan traveled to the Indiana Wesleyan Invitational. Tevin Washington finished third in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.11 seconds, and was runner-up with a time of 23.02 in the 200-meter dash. Bryant Qualls was the first to finish the 1000-meter run in 2:43.36. KWC’s Cornelia Thompson and Crystal Hopkins topped the leaderboard in shot put placing first and third, respectively.