EVANSVILLE, Ind.—For the second time in less than two weeks, the University of Southern Indiana women's basketball team gets a crack at the GLVC's top team as it travels to Quincy, Illinois, to take on No. 19 Quincy University Saturday at 1 p.m.
The Screaming Eagles (13-9, 5-7 GLVC) went toe-to-toe with the Hawks (20-3, 12-1 GLVC) for nearly 30 minutes on February 5, but a 10-0 Quincy run midway through the final period was too much for USI to overcome.
USI was led by sophomore guards
Amie Newhart (Mulberry, Indiana) and
Lauren Meneghetti (Munster, Indiana), who each finished with 12 points, while Quincy benefitted from junior forward Janette Burgin's game-high 18 points.
Since the loss to Quincy, USI has reeled off back-to-back wins, including a thrilling 90-86 double-overtime victory over Drury University last Saturday and a 94-75 win over Lake Erie College Wednesday night.
USI, which has a half-game lead for third-place in the GLVC West Division, is looking for its first win over a top 25 team since it defeated then No. 10 Quincy, 81-66, on January 22, 2004. The Eagles have since lost 13 straight to top 25 teams, a trend that the Eagles would love to break Saturday.
To accomplish that, USI will need to get its inside game going early. In their last two games, senior forward/centers
Brittany Neuman (Huntingburg, Indiana) and
Ninette Evans (Memphis, Tennessee) have combined for 64 points and 29 rebounds.
Neuman enters Saturday's contest as the GLVC leader in conference only games in field goal percentage (.583). She is third on the team with 9.7 points per game and fourth in the conference with a team-best 7.5 rebounds per outing.
Sophomore guard
Ellen Young (Salem, Illinois) leads USI with 14.0 points per appearance, while Newhart is averaging 11.0 points and a team-high 3.2 assists per contest.
Quincy, which has won 10 straight games, is led by senior guard Jessica Keller. Keller, who tallied 12 points in Quincy's trip to the PAC, leads the GLVC with 19.4 points and 4.00 steals per contest. She also ranks second in the conference with 4.5 assists per game.
Saturday's contest, the first of two straight road games for the Eagles, can be heard on the radio on WSPR 90.7 FM and WSWI AM 820 as well as the internet at www.820theedge.com.
