| Trevor Seibring and the Illinois Wesleyan didn't get any Top 25 votes in the preseason poll, but that's likely to change in the first regular season poll. File photo by Claire Hoverson, Illinois Wesleyan |
Voters will have a lot to sort through when they cast their first Top 25 ballot on Monday. Saturday's results added to the confusion as Illinois Wesleyan rolled past No. 8 Ohio Wesleyan, both ranked South region teams lost and No. 6 Benedictine looked sharp against No. 21 UW-Oshkosh.
- Saturday scores: Men | Women
- Saturday game stories: Men | Women
- Women's recap: UAA women show mettle
Illinois Wesleyan built a double-digit lead midway through its game at Ohio Wesleyan and never looked back in a convincing 88-70 victory.
The Titans (5-0) seized control with a 14-2 run midway capped by Andy Stempel's three-pointer with 9:49 left in the first haf. Stempel hit another three to open the second half and open up a 20-point advantage for Illinois Wesleyan. The Titans led by 30 with four minutes to play before the Battling Bishops (2-2) closed the deficit against the Illinois Wesleyan reserves.
Stempel finished with 21 points on 8-for-10 shooting, including 5-for-7 from three. Brady Rose and Trevor Seibring added 20 and 14 points respectively. Seth Clark scored 14 for Ohio Wesleyan while All-American Nate Axelrod was held to six points on four field goal attempts. Box score
No. 6 Benedictine looked sharp against WIAC favorite UW-Oshkosh as the Eagles used a flurry of three-pointers to put away the Titans, 68-55. Oshkosh (2-2) trimmed a double-digit deficit to five points in the second half, only to see Zach Gorney, Michael Blaszczyk and Braden Olson hit 3 pointers and push Benedictine's lead back to 14. Blaszczyk finished with 20 points for the Eagles (2-2), who finished a 1-2 stretch at home against Top 25 ranked foes. Benedictine's only remaining non-conference games are against non-Division III Menlo and Indiana Wesleyan.
| Khory Moore and Virginia Wesleyan coulldn't fight past Emory and Henry in the ODAC conference opener for both teams. Photo by Virginia Wesleyan athletics |
Both ranked teams from the South region picked up their second loss on Saturday. No. 15 Emory had four starters score double-figures, but the Eagles' bench was outscored 31-16 by LaGrange and the Panthers came away with a 95-84 victory. No. 16 Virginia Wesleyan opened ODAC play on the wrong foot as the Marlins stumbled at home against Emory and Henry, 79-77. The Wasps earned their first win in Virginia Beach since the 1997-98 season.
No. 11 John Carroll shook off its tough start to the season and pounded La Roche, 107-82. The Blue Streaks (1-2) host No. 22 Hope on Tuesday night. The Flying Dutchmen picked up their first loss to NAIA Cornerstone, 95-78.
Outside the Top 25, Grinnell and Greenville provided the rare matchup between two System teams. Not surprisingly, there were plenty of three point shots (97 combined) and turnovers (59 combined), with Grinnell coming out on top, 151-128. Julian Marx scored 39 points for the Pioneers who set a new record for free throws with 54. Box score
Scranton held off rival King's 79-70 in the Cross County Challenge as John Vitkus posted a double-double for the Royals (23 points, 14 rebounds). Delaware Valley had a game-tying three rim out and Hood held on to beat the Aggies 67-64 in a battle of surprising undefeated teams.
Rhodes scored over 100 points for the fourth consecutive game, but so did its opponents. This time Bluffton edged Rhodes 102-100 as the Beavers shot 62 percent (38-for-61) from the field. Austin Rohde's jump shot with 11 seconds left helped Bluffton improve to 3-0.
Concordia-Moorhead coach Rich Glas reached one milestone and moved a step closer to a second one in the Cobbers' 80-64 victory over St. Scholastica. Glas coached his 1,000th game and picked up career victory No. 598.