St. Louis, Mo., December 4, 2010 –The No. 6 Washington University in St. Louis women's basketball team held Elmhurst College without a field goal for a stretch of more than 11 minutes during the first half en route to a 61-36 victory in the 10th Annual McWilliams Classic championship game on Saturday, Dec. 4, at the Washington University Field House in St. Louis, Mo.

Washington University sophomore Annie Sayers, senior Kathryn Berger and senior Alex Hoover were named to the McWilliams Classic All-Tournament team, with Sayers garnering Jacqueline Bickel Schaap Most Valuable Player accolades. It is the second appearance on the McWilliams Classic All-Tournament Team for Berger, who earned the honor as a sophomore.

Also earning all-tournament honors was Ohio Wesleyan's Tyler Cordell and Kayla Gordon, Margo Russell and Kelley Paradis from the University of New England, and Meghan Merklein and Megan Ney from Elmhurst.

Washington University led 31-14 at the half, but the Bears struggled to get on track during the early moments of the win. Elmhurst opened up an 8-0 lead with a three from Devin Vaughn at the 14:29 mark as the Bears missed their first six field goals and turned the ball over four times before scoring their first point.

But when the offense did finally get going the points came in bunches. Freshman point guard Lucy Montgomery ended the drought with a three at the 14:02 mark, and drained a second long-range bucket on the Bears' next possession. Another three, this time from Berger gave Washington University its first lead of the game, 11-8, and a Sayers lay-up completed a 15-0 run.

Elmhurst College missed 11-straight field goal attempts and committed six turnovers during its 11:26 field goal drought from 14:29 to the 3:03 mark of the first half. Washington University outscored the Bluejays 31-6 over the final 14 minutes of the opening period and limited Elmhurst to just four first-half baskets.

Sayers led the way with 10 points on 3-of-6 shooting in the first half, while Montgomery added six with her pair of early three-pointers. Elmhurst shot 4-of-24 (16.7 percent) in the first half and turned the ball over 10 times. Washington University controlled the glass, holding a 26-15 margin on the boards and led second-chance scoring by a 16-3 margin.

Washington University held Elmhurst under 40 points, marking the first time this season the Bears have held an opponent under 40 points. Elmhurst finished the game shooting 22.2 percent from the field. The Bears are now holding their opponents to 52.3 points per game in 2010-11 and are allowing a stellar 46.2 points per game at home. Opponents are shooting just 27.8 percent against Washington University at the WU Field House so far this year.

Sayers finished with a game-high 12 points, setting a career-high in scoring for the second night in a row. Junior guard Bethany Morrison tallied a team-high four assists against Elmhurst and Berger scored five points with a team-high six rebounds. Merklein led Elmhurst with nine points and four rebounds.

Washington U. (5-1) continues its five-game homestand on Friday, Dec. 10, when it welcomes Central College (Iowa) to the Washington University Field House in St. Louis, Mo. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.