February 2, 2001

Sports for February 2

Men's hoops splits pair

The men's basketball team saw its seven-game winning streak come to an end with a 66-56 home loss to the University of Rochester on Jan. 26. Rochester led from start to finish as the Bears shot just 37 percent from the field. WU got as close at 55-50 with 5:08 remaining but couldn't pull out a comeback win. Senior Chris Alexander led the Bears with 15 points, Ryan Patton had 10; and Jarriot Rook had eight points, six rebounds and four blocks.

The Bears' Ryan Patton makes a pass during a recent men's basketball game

The Bears immediately started a new winning streak and improved to 16-2 Sunday by rolling over Case Western Reserve University, 101-56, in the Field House. The Bears came out slowly against Case and led by three midway through the first half. But a 22-6 run then gave WU a 44-25 lead en route to a 50-32 halftime edge, and Case would get no closer than 16 points down in the second half. The Bears went over the century mark for the third time this season by hitting 53 percent of their shots and seven-of-15 shooting from three-point range. Rook led all scorers with 25 points and added a game-high five blocks. Alexander scored 14, Joel Parrott had 12; and Matt Tabash had 11 points, four assists and three steals. Patton had nine points and a season-high 11 assists, and Chris Jeffries had nine points and a career-high 11 rebounds.

Women's basketball wins two

The women's basketball team began its weekend with a convincing 71-42 win over Rochester on Jan. 26. Kristi Eller hit a three-pointer six minutes into the contest to give the Bears a lead they would never relinquish. WU then went on a 29-6 run to end the half up 39-14. The Bears cruised in the second half, as 17 players saw action and 11 scored. Jennifer Rudis collected a game-high 11 points, Sara Ettner had 10; and Tasha Rodgers had nine points, 10 boards, six assists and five steals. The Bears held Rochester to just 32 percent shooting.

Sunday's game against Case Western Reserve played out much like that Rochester win, as the Bears trailed early but took a commanding lead - 42-24 - by halftime. The Bears did it with defense, holding the Spartans to just 21 percent shooting in the first half and 33 percent for the game - extending WU's streak of holding opponents under 50 percent shooting to 72 games.

Sunday was also a day of personal highlights - Rodgers scored 13 to vault into third place all-time at the University in scoring with 1,368 career points. Also, Lindsey Merrill had 15 points, including a career-high nine free-throws, and Robin Lahargoue set career-highs in points (17) and rebounds (13).

The Bears are 8-0 in the University Athletic Association and 17-1 overall. WU has won 54 consecutive home games.

Swimming and diving come in second

The men's and women's swimming and diving teams captured identical finishes Jan. 26-27 at the WU Invitational. The men were second only to Division II Missouri-Rolla, and the women came short of D-II Nebraska-Omaha.

For the women, Lindsay Wilkinson was part of four first-place finishes and two seconds. The junior swam the first leg of the winning 200- and 400-yard medley relay teams and captured individual crowns in the 50-free (25.21) and 100-free (54.64).

On the men's side, diver Ryan Braun captured second-place finishes in both the 1-meter (377.05) and 3-meter (394.65). Matt Johnson took second place in the 200-yard freestyle (1:46.29)

Compiled by Keith Jenkins, director, sports information. For up-to-date news about Washington University's athletics program, access the Bears' Web site at bearsports.wustl.edu.

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