Women's basketball

SIUE freshman honored by OVC

EDWARDSVILLE -- After shattering her previous season high in scoring, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville's Jessie Wendt was named the Ohio Valley Conference women's basketball Freshman of the Week on Tuesday.

Wendt scored 24 points in SIUE's 75-69 victory Monday over Tennessee State at the Vadalabene Center. The win lifted SIUE into a berth in the OVC Tournament which will be played in Nashville, Tenn., Mar. 6-9.

She shot 8 of 13 from the field, including 4 of 6 from three-point range. The four three-pointers matched her previous season high. The 5-foot, 11-inch guard from Sigel, Ill., was 4 of 5 from the free throw line. Her previous season best in scoring was 12 points.

Also receiving OVC honors this week were UT Martin's Jasmine Newsome for Player of the Week and Belmont's Jordan Coleman for Newcomer of the Week.

SIUE, 14-13 overall and 8-7 in the OVC, closes out the league regular season Saturday in a 6:30 p.m. game in Charleston against Eastern Illinois.

Men's golf

Cougars finish 10th in Snowman Getaway

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville men's golf completed its first tournament of the spring Tuesday, finishing 10th of 14 teams at Washington State's Snowman Getaway.

SIUE finished with a combined total of 887 at the 54-hole event held at Palm Valley Golf Club. Missouri claimed the team competition with an 853. The Tigers finished seven strokes better than host Washington State which had an 860. Utah Valley (865), Kansas City (868), and Air Force (870) completed the top five.

Colin McCarty fired a final round 72 to finish even for the tournament at 216. He tied for 14th place.

Taylor White tied for 30th with a 220. Taylor Cox was just two strokes behind White with a 222 and tied for 39th. Mitchell Homb tied for 70th with a 230. Dalton Charboneau took a 233 and tied for 76th.

Missouri's Jace Long took medalist honors with a 209.

SIUE returns to the links March 18-19 at the Carter Plantation Intercollegiate, hosted by Southeastern Louisiana.

Bowling

Bearcat men, women in sectionals

LEBANON -- For the second straight year, the McKendree University bowling teams will head south to Tennessee to compete in the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Intercollegiate Team Championships sectional qualifiers. The two-day tournament will be held March 9-10.

McKendree was assigned to the Smyrna, Tennessee, sectional qualifier for the second year in a row. There will be 20 men's and 17 women's teams competing in Smyrna - located just outside of Nashville - for a spot in the field for the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships that will be held in Lincoln, Neb., in April. Sectional qualifying play will consist of a total of 64 Baker-format games, with 32 games taking place each day.

There are four sectional qualifiers across the country on March 9-10. The top four teams in each sectional tournament - four each for men and women - will advance to the 16-team field at the national tournament, which is slated to take place April 18-20 at Sun Valley Lanes in Lincoln.

In 2012, both McKendree programs took part in the Smyrna sectional, which was held at the same Smyrna Bowl facility that the 2013 event will take place. The Bearcat women's team finished in second place in the event with 12,327 pins to qualify for its eighth consecutive trip to the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships. The McKendree men's team narrowly missed a trip to the national tournament as it came up nine pins short of the fourth and final berth in the sectional.

In addition to the team event to be held March 9-10, qualifying will be held for the 2013 USBC Intercollegiate Singles Championships at each of the four sectional sites on March 8. The top four finishers -- along with eight additional selections -- will head to the national singles tournament to be held April 16, also in Lincoln.

Baseball

Cougars move Friday's game to 3 p.m.

EDWARDSVILLE -- The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville baseball team has adjusted its weekend home series with IPFW because of weather concerns. The home opener originally scheduled for Friday night at 6 p.m. is now scheduled to be played at 3 p.m.

The Cougars and the Mastodons are set to play a doubleheader Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. with a nine-inning game to be followed by a seven-inning contest.

The two teams will finish the series with a 1 p.m. game Sunday.

As always, fans are encouraged to keep up to date with all schedule changes at SIUECougars.com.

Track and field

SIUE thinclads do well in OVC meet

CHARLESTON -- Colleen McDonough and the men's 4x400 relay team each won conference titles as the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville men's and women's track & field teams wrapped up competition at the Ohio Valley Conference Indoor Championships.

"I'm really happy with our performance," coach Kareem Jackson said. "This atmosphere is amazing, and to see us come out today and win conference championships in two events; that's what it's all about."

McDonough took home first place honors in the women's shot put with a throw of 47 feet, 7.25 inches.

"It feels great," McDonough said after the meet. "With this being our first time competing at conference, I wanted to represent both our team and all of our past alumni well. I thought the whole team stepped up."

Jatavia Wright also had a big day on the women's side. She took second in the triple jump with a leap of 39-9.25 and also grabbed third in the 60 meter hurdles with a finish of 8.62 seconds. The time set a new women's school record at SIUE.

On the men's side, Thayer Harrison got the day rolling with a second-place finish in the triple jump with a mark of 46-7.5.

Braxton Klavins also earned second in the 400 meters with a time of 48.87.

"We challenged our athletes to raise their intensity, and it showed in the performances," Jackson added. "We knew what we had to do today, and I thought we really brought the energy needed to be successful."

The day ended with a bang as the men's 4x400 relay team of Josh Thomas, La'Derrick Ward, Ahmad Evans, and Klavins took home the gold medal after an electrifying come-from-behind victory.

Klavins caught Eastern Illinois' Sean Wiggin in the race's final 50 meters to give the Cougars the conference title. SIUE finished in a time of 3:18.92.

"Everybody in the relay knew what they needed to do and they executed perfectly," Klavins said. "The guys set it up for me at the end, and I just needed to finish."

On the men's side, the Cougars finished fourth as a team with 82 points overall. Eastern Illinois, who hosted the meet, finished first.

The SIUE women finished fifth with 74 points as a team. Southeast Missouri grabbed the women's team title.

The Cougars will now prepare for NCAA Indoor National Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. The meet will be held March 8-9.

Bearcats finish sixth in GLVC meet

LEBANON -- The McKendree University men's track and field team closed out its winter season with a sixth-place performance at the Great Lakes Valley Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships. The two-day event wrapped up Saturday on the campus of the University of Indianapolis.

McKendree collected a total of 48 points at the event to finish in the middle of the 11-team field. Host school Indianapolis ran away from the competition to win the GLVC crown with 200 points, followed by Missouri S & T with 98 points. This was McKendree's first GLVC indoor championship meet.

Junior Jordon Henderson brought home the lone first-place finish for McKendree at the GLVC meet. Henderson won the 60-meter dash in a time of 6.75 seconds. Freshman teammate Cameron James (Edwardsville) - who entered the meet with the best time on the conference performance list - took third at 6.86 seconds, while fellow freshman Donovan Friscia was sixth in the race with a time of 6.96 seconds. The 60-meter dash was the lone event in which the Bearcats placed three individuals in the top six.

By winning the 60-meter dash, Henderson became the first Bearcat track and field athlete to earn first-team All-GLVC honors.

McKendree had two runners that earned top-four finishes in the 800-meter run. Sophomore Ryan Todd (Jerseyville) brought home third place in the race with a time of 1:56.28. Senior Josh Wilhelm (Wesclin) was right behind in fourth place at 1:57.17.

In the mile run, junior Blake DeLong (Hillsboro) claimed fifth place in the field of 30 runners. DeLong crossed the finish line in a time of 4:19.63. DeLong also grabbed eighth place in the 3,000-meter run. He posted a time of 8:39.61 in the distance event.

The Bearcats came home in fifth place in the 4 x 400-meter relay on Saturday. The quartet of Todd, Wilhelm, junior Jordan Stark (Belleville West) and senior Nick Thompson Herrin) combined for a time of 3:28.32.

In field events, McKendree collected a pair of seventh-place showings on the final day of competition. Junior Sterling Jackson was seventh in the triple jump as he covered a distance of 12.95 meters. Junior E.J. Rahar (Triad) - who was ninth in Friday's weight throw - improved to seventh in the shot put with a toss of 13.26 meters.

McKendree women wind up 10th at meet

LEBANON --The McKendree University women's track and field team placed 10th in the field of the 2013 Great Lakes Valley Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships. The two-day meet wrapped up Saturday on the campus of the University of Indianapolis.

As a team, McKendree posted a total of 23.5 points at the meet. Bellarmine University repeated as the event champion with 156 points, topping runner-up Indianapolis with 141 points.

Junior LaTia Jefferson (Belleville East) soared to the individual championship of the triple jump to highlight Saturday's action for McKendree. Jefferson cleared a distance of 11.54 meters for the Bearcats' lone first-place finish on the women's side. With her victory, Jefferson becomes the first McKendree female track and field athlete to collect first-team All-GLVC accolades.

In addition to her triumph in the triple jump, Jefferson finished eighth in the high jump. She cleared a height of 1.55 meters.

In the finals of the 60-meter hurdles, freshman Lynn Fordbrought home fifth place with a time of 9.34 seconds. Senior Ciera Landolt (Triad) raced to a 10th place showing in the 800-meter run. Landolt was clocked in a time of 2:23.43.

Senior Kristin Wykoff (Triad) -- who earned a second-place finish in Friday's weight throw -- nabbed her second top-10 effort of the meet as she placed eighth in the shot put. Wykoff threw for a distance of 11.69 meters.

Women's lacrosse

McKendree wins inaugural game

LEBANON -- The McKendree University women's lacrosse team came away with a victory in its inaugural game on Saturday afternoon over Fontbonne University 16-1.

The Bearcats improve to 1-0 overall and will host Indiana Tech on Saturday at noon.

McKendree scored early and often on its way to a 7-0 lead at the half. Freshman midfield Sarah Collins scored the first goal in program history 7:31 into the game to take a 1-0 lead.

Freshman goalie Kelly Eastman (O'Fallon) played the entire game in the cage, allowing one goal with four saves.

Wrestling

SIUE drops duals to VMI, Chattanooga

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- David Devine was the lone double winner Saturday for the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville wrestling team.

The Cougars dropped a 32-12 decision to VMI and a 40-3 match to host Chattanooga. Saturday's action was the finale for the 2012-13 regular season for the Cougars.

SIUE coach David Ray said he was disappointed with the Cougars' performance to close out the regular season. SIUE completed the dual season with a 5-19 record and a 1-6 mark in Southern Conference (SoCon) action.

"My expectations were a lot higher than what happened," he said.

Devine scored a pin against VMI'sMichael LaPrade in 1 minute, 36 seconds. He followed that up with a 5-4 victory over Chattanooga's Kevin Malone. Ray said Devine's victories will place him in a good position for the Southern Conference (SoCon Championships.

"I think he'll be seeded No. 2 or No. 3 at the lowest," Ray said.

Patrick Myers scored his 20th victory of the season with a pin in 1:28 over VMI'sAndriy Onufriyenko at 133 pounds.

"We had two guys (Devine and Myers) who wrestled tough, and they won," said Ray.

Ray said his goal will be to return to Edwardsville and have his wrestlers focus on what they need to improve upon before the SoCon Championships no March 9 in Lexington, Va.

Women's tennis

Salukis take bite out of Bearcats

CARBONDALE -- The McKendree University women's tennis team lost 7-0 at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.

The Bearcatsfell to 1-1 overall and will travel to St. Louis to compete in the Principia College Invitational.

The two-day tournament begins Friday.

Evansville defeats Cougar netwomen

EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- Despite a solid effort from Monique Krutak, the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville women's tennis team suffered a 6-1 defeat at the hands of Evansville Friday night at the Tri-County Athletic Club.

Krutak improved her season singles record to 5-1 with a 7-5, 7-5 victory over the Purple Aces' Natasha James.

"This was probably Monique's best singles match since she arrived on campus (in January)," coach Jason Coomer said. "She played very well and beat a very solid player from Evansville."

Krutak also teamed with Haley Ilcewicz to earn an 8-3 doubles win over Evansville's Gaby Fifer and Emily Richardson.

"Monique and Haley played very well considering they had never played together in doubles," Coomer said.

Next up for the Cougars is a home dual match against Chicago State March 2, their last match before heading to Orlando, Fla. for three matches March 4-6.

"We have to have short memories," Coomer added. "We have to have a good week of practice in preparation for Chicago State before flying south to compete in Orlando."

Cross country

SIUE harriers to well in academics

EDWARDSVILLE -- The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville men's and women's cross country teams both were awarded All-Academic status by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

To qualify as a USTFCCCA All-Academic Cross Country Team, the team must have had a cumulative team GPA of 3.00 or better and have started at least five runners at their NCAA regional championship.

The SIUE men posted a cumulative 3.41 grade point average, while the Cougar women turned in a 3.24 cumulative GPA.

"We are very proud of our athletes' academic performance both this year and in general," Head Coach Eileen McAllister said. "Doing well academically, namely getting above a 3.0, is one of our program's expectations for our student-athletes."

Leading the way in the classroom was freshman Scott Woodard for the men and sophomore Katie Trettenero for the women, who each achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA this past semester.

145 Division I men's teams and 200 Division I women's teams were recognized across the country.

Oklahoma State was awarded USTFCCCA Men's Scholar Team of the Year. Oregon was named USTFCCCA Women's Scholar Team of the Year.