George Washington University Athletics
West Division Titans Clash at Robins Center Sunday
2/12/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 12, 2005
WASHINGTON, DC - Two of the top teams in the Atlantic 10 West meet when GW (15-7, 8-3 Atlantic 10) and Richmond (18-4, 9-2 Atlantic 10) square off at the Robins Center on Sunday, Feb. 13 at 12:00 p.m. Both squads are angling for one of the division's two byes in the A-10 Championship.
The Spiders are tied with Xavier for first place in the division at 9-2, while the Colonials are one game back at 8-3. Richmond survived a scare from Rhode Island on Feb. 10, securing a 49-46 win on DeUnna Hendrix's first three of the season with five seconds left to play. Xaiver kept pace with the Spiders by knocking off La Salle on Feb. 11.
GW has put together back-to-back victories since losing at La Salle on Feb. 4. In their most recent outing, at Duquesne on Feb. 10, the Colonials dominated the Dukes, 79-47. GW set a season high with 46 rebounds in the contest and tied its campaign best for defensive rebounds with 32. In all, six Colonials grabbed at least five boards and the Buff and Blue were paced by sophomore Whitney Allen, who tied her personal high with nine. GW also set a season mark by hitting 13-of-15 (.867) free throws against the Dukes. Sophomore Kenan Cole made both of her foul shots in the game and leads the Colonials in free-throw percentage at .909 (20-22).
Freshman Kimberly Beck tied her career best with nine assists against the Dukes and can tie the GW freshman record for helpers with six versus the Spiders on Sunday. Kathy Marshall owns the rookie assist mark with 122 in 1981-82. Senior All-America candidate Anna Montañana led the Colonials in scoring for the 12th time this season with 18 points at Duquesne.
Richmond has won its last two games since stepping out of conference to play Virginia Tech on Feb. 2. The Hokies handed the Spiders a 79-63 loss.
The Spiders have been tough on visiting teams so far this season, posting a 9-1 record in game played at the Robins Center. Richmond is led by preseason all-conference picks Kate Flavin and Saona Chapman. Flavin ranks second in the league in scoring average at 17.5 points per outing and second in rebounds per game at 9.0. Against Florida on Dec. 4, Flavin scored the most points by any A-10 player this season when she dropped 36 in Richmond's overtime win. Chapman ranks second on the team in scoring at 11.6 points per game and she is second in the conference in assists per game at 4.68.
The Colonials have beaten the Spiders nine times out of 10 in the all-time series, including handing them their first A-10 loss of the season back on Jan. 19 at the Smith Center. In that matchup, GW used a 17-5 run at the end of the first half and the start of the second to take control of the game. Senior Jessica Simmonds led the way for GW with 17 points in the contest and the Colonials' defense held Flavin to just eight points.
Sunday's game will be televised on the Atlantic 10 Television Network with Larry Rosen and Pam Roecker calling the action. Fans should check their local listings for availability in their areas, however, the game will not be telecast in Washington, DC. Fans can also hear the game live over the Internet on GW's student radio station (WRGW Radio) at www.gwradio.com.
