Wartburg Four-peats as Conference Champion

2/22/2020 4:27:03 PM

DUBUQUE, Iowa -- The No.8-ranked Wartburg women's basketball team capped off their fourth consecutive American Rivers Conference regular-season championship with an 88-47 victory at the University of Dubuque Saturday afternoon.  

Wartburg came into the day knowing they owned at least a share of the 2020 conference title after earning a thrilling 79-76 overtime victory at 10th-ranked Loras College Wednesday, February 19. The win over Loras also secured the No.1 seed in the American Rivers Conference tournament. 

With today's win, the Knights finished the year 14-2 in conference play and 22-3 overall. 

Wartburg came out of the gates hot, taking a 22-8 advantage after the first quarter, with the help of a 15-0 run. Never looking back, the Knights took a 42-16 lead into the locker room. The Knights came out of halftime picking up where they left off,  going on a 12-0 run early in the third quarter to extend their lead 62-20. Wartburg went on to seal the program's fourth straight outright outright American Rivers Conference title. The Knights shot 46.4% from the field, and went 34.1% from behind the 3-point line. 

Sophomore Bailey Brown set the pace for the Wartburg and led all scorers with 18 points on the afternoon. Kaitlyn Volesky had 15, and Macy Harris had 14. Senior Emma Gerdes led the team with seven assists, and junior Tori Hazard had eight rebounds on the day.

Dubuque was led offensively by Tabria Thomas who scored nine points, and sophomore Miah Smith pulled down eight rebounds for the Spartans. 

Wartburg, with a first-round bye in the six-team conference tournament, won't play until Thursday, February 27. The Knights will face the winner of fourth-seeded Coe and fifth-seeded Simpson. The A-R-C tournament championship game is a week from today and earns the winner an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship.

Today's championship is the ninth in the storied history of Wartburg women's basketball. Over the past four years, Head coach Bob Amsberry has guided the Knights to two NCAA Division III final four appearances and one trip to the Elite Eight. 
 
 
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