Red Devils Eyeing Big Senior Day Against Principia
EUREKA – There is one home game left on the calendar for the Eureka women's basketball team: Senior Day.
On Saturday before 1 p.m., the Red Devils will honor a trio of accomplished seniors inside Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena and Convocation Center. Then, the maroon and gold will look to complete a season series sweep of Principia.
The Red Devils will enter the game 10-13 on the season and 6-7 in St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play after sweeping Blackburn with a 78-64 win over the Beavers on Monday and falling short 67-62 at Greenville on Wednesday.
Eureka's seniors all had strong performances in the narrow loss to the Panthers.
Four-year senior, two-time All-SLIAC and two-time SLIAC All-Academic honoree Olivia Falls tallied a team-high 19 points, with 10 coming in the fourth quarter. She also collected a team-high eight boards and shot 7-for-17 from the floor on the night.
Earlier this season, Falls became the 18th player in program history to record 1,000 points. Earlier this month, she became the fifth player in program history to record both 1,000 points and 700 rebounds. Heading into Senior Day, Falls ranks seventh all-time in program history in scoring with 1,150 points and sixth in program history in career rebounds with 760. She has averaged 13.2 points and 8.7 rebounds per game in 87 games played over the past four seasons.
"She's tough as nails and doesn't back down from anything or anyone," second-year EC women's basketball coach Jaylynn Stewart said. "She leads by example and, no matter what we're doing or who we're playing, we always get the same Liv. She puts her head down and gets to work every single day, and that's been evident in her production on the court and in the classroom."
Four-year senior Marissa Murphy added 11 points, one rebound, one assist and one steal in 20 minutes off the bench on Wednesday.
A point guard and defensive disruptor the Red Devils, Murphy has tallied 453 points, 230 rebounds, 167 steals, 160 assists and 29 blocks in 84 games played over the past four seasons. She has been an asset as both a starter, making 24 starts over the past three seasons, and as an energetic contributor off the bench. She has reached double figures four times this season and has tallied four or more steals five times this season.
"Marissa is as athletic a player as I've ever coached," Stewart said. "She's typically the fastest person on the floor and plays with great instincts on the defensive end of the floor. She has shown great growth over this season."
Senior Kennedy Jackson also finished with 11 points at Greenville, complementing her scoring with physical defense and good ball movement. The two-year Red Devils recorded six rebounds, four assists, one steal and a career-high four blocks in the game.
Jackson, who transferred to Eureka last year from Carl Sandburg, has been one of the Red Devils' primary post presences for the past two seasons. She has notched 250 points, 219 rebounds, 22 assists, 22 steals and 18 blocks in 38 games in maroon and gold.
This season, Jackson has contributed 7.3 points and six boards per game. She has finished in double figures in scoring seven times this season and notched two double-doubles.
"Kennedy is a leader and works hard to make those around her better," Stewart said. "She's always willing to put the team first and do whatever it takes to help us be successful. She's shown a lot of growth over the last couple years both on and off the court."
Principia enters 1-18 on the season and hasn't won since edging Knox in overtime, 65-62, on Nov. 27. The Panthers have come within seven of Blackburn and five of Greenville this winter.
When the Red Devils came to Elsah on Feb. 7, the Panthers kept it competitive in the first half, but EC pulled away comfortably in the second half and won 86-68.
Principia happened to be playing without starter and leading scorer Alana Hinson. The 6-foot Hinson averages 12 points per game. Paige Fowler and Aaliyah Scott follow with 10.9 and 10.4 points per game, respectively. Fowler, a 5-foot-9 freshman, leads the team in rebounding with 7.4 boards per game.
The Red Devils have a 34-9 advantage in the all-time series with Principia, and have won seven straight against the Panthers.
