LEBANON, Ill. - McKendree University women's basketball will play its first games of the new year this week on Wednesday, Jan. 3 and Saturday, Jan. 6. The Bearcats face Great Lakes Valley Conference newcomer Upper Iowa at home on Wednesday in a 5:30 p.m. game and travel to Missouri S&T on Saturday for a 1 p.m. game. With a streak of nine wins in a row, McKendree looks to carry over its momentum into 2023.
McKendree enters this week with a 10-2 overall record and 6-0 record in the conference to place them in the top spot for the GLVC. In conference statistics, the Bearcats are shooting the second-highest percentage from the field at 45.2 percent. Individually, McKendree is led in scoring by junior guard Clare Breden at 16.5 points per game for the sixth-highest average in the conference. Two more Bearcats are in the top five for statistical categories including senior forward Naomi McDaniel at second in field goal percentage (56.3 percent) and senior guard Christy Fortune netting 41.1 percent of her three-point tries (third in GLVC). In all of Division II, McDaniel sits in the top 30 for field goal percentage.
Wednesday's game will mark the fourth all-time meeting between McKendree and Upper Iowa, though it will be the first contest in which the two teams are in the same conference. The Peacocks are 5-3 on the year and 2-2 in the GLVC so far this season. As a team, Upper Iowa leads the GLVC in three-point percentage (38.6 percent) and three-pointers made (10.4 per game).
Upper Iowa is led in scoring by graduate guard Katie Tornstrom with an average of 16.6 points per game. Tornstrom also appears in the top five for the conference in three-pointers made (2.9 per game), three-point percentage (38.3 percent), and steals (2.0 per game).
Missouri S&T has had a challenging start to the conference portion of its schedule with an overall record of 3-10 and 0-5 for the GLVC. At third in scoring for the conference, junior forward Katelynne Roberts averages 17.4 points per game. She is also third in field goal percentage (55.7 percent) and fourth in both rebounding (8.5 per game) and blocked shots (1.2 per game).
Both games will be streamed live on the GLVC Sports Network (glvcsn.com) via pay-per-view. Live statistics are also available.
