Box Score LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Junior
Calysia Phillips poured in a game-high 27 points to lead The W to a huge, 66-57, St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) road win at Spalding University. The win helped entrench the Owls (5-12, 4-6 SLIAC) in the sixth slot in the SLIAC post-season race, by virtue of the win over the Golden Eagles (5-12, 4-6 SLIAC) at Columbia Gym.
"It was a season-saving win on the road," MUW Head Coach Eric Vaughn said. "The girls competed at a high level.
Kymani Smith, a freshman who hadn't hardly played all year, started and gave us an opportunity to take Phillips off the ball and she could play her natural position of shooting guard. Smith did a good job especially getting thrown in the fire.
Claire Leak,
Conley Langford, and
Maddie Guerin all hit big shots down the stretch to seal the victory.
Reshya Hudson had, arguably, her best game of the year with a big double-double."
Phillips and the Owls made a statement out of the gate. Spalding led for 1:40 minutes early on the afternoon, but The W would reel off nine unanswered points to forge ahead, 11-4, and never look back. Phillips had 21 of her points in the opening half, connecting on more long distance than a Mayberry telephone operator (Editor's note: younger readers please see "The Andy Griffith Show" for context). Phillips was 5-of-6 from beyond the arc in the first half – finishing 5-of-9 for the game – and ending the day with eight rebounds, five assists, and five steals, as well.
The senior transfer Hudson had tallied 11 points and hauled in 14 rebounds. She was 5-of-8 from the floor, overall.
Senior guard
Conley Langford contributed 10 points as her team's third double-figure scorer. Langford snagged five rebounds and made three steals.
Leak chipped in eight points and dished off four assists, including a pair of back-to-back three balls in the fourth quarter that pushed her team's lead back to double digits. Guerin added seven points and four rebounds off of the Owls' bench, also canning a trey in the final period.
MUW held a 50-45 margin in total rebounds.
The W will take the court next on Thursday (Jan. 28/5:30 p.m.) at home versus SLIAC co-leader Westminster College.
