University News

Women's Basketball Defeats South Dakota, Claims Outright Regular Season Title

February 27, 2017

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Courtesy of WIU Athletics

Western Illinois captures its first outright league title since 2005-06 in front of a record attendance.

MACOMB, IL -- In front of the largest crowd in program history, the Western Illinois women's basketball team picked up an 81-76 Senior Day victory over South Dakota to win the Summit League Regular Season Championship outright.

"It's a dream come true," said Head Coach JD Gravina. "We've built something special here. These girls believed, and it was a special day in front of a special crowd. It doesn't get any better. It took a special group of girls and we found an identity. We have great leadership and they are everything you could ask for in a team. Every single person on this team is very selfless and I'm lucky to be a part of it."

The win marked the first regular season league title since 2005-06, and also matched a program-best 23 wins. Seniors Mallory Boyle and Jasmine Patrick also cap off their last regular season game with bang.

"Mallory and Jasmine have been a huge part of changing and building our culture one game at a time," said Gravina.

With the No. 1 seed locked up for the Summit League Tournament, Western Illinois will now set its sights to No. 8 seeded Denver in Sioux Falls, S.D. Tipoff is scheduled for Saturday, March 4 at noon.

"People still don't see us as the favorite entering the tournament, but we have no reason to question ourselves and we want to keep the magic going. We're excited to get to Sioux Falls," said Gravina.

See the complete story, including statistics and photo gallery, at goleathernecks.com.

Posted By: WIU Athletics (SID@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing