Press release submitted by Tyler Price, Baker University Assistant Athletic Director
BALDWIN CITY, Kansas – The number 1 Baker University women's basketball team completed the Heart of America Athletic Conference sweep on Monday night, as they defeated number 2 Benedictine, 64-51, for its first-ever Heart Conference Tournament Championship, inside the Collins Center in front of a worldwide audience on the Watch ESPN App and locally on KSMO-TV.
The first-ever Heart Tournament title comes after the Wildcats won the Heart regular season crown outright last week.
The Wildcats enter the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship in Billings, Montana Mar. 15-21 with a record of 29-4 and has won 16-straight games.
This marks Baker's fourth-straight trip to the NAIA National Championship Tournament. The Ravens fall to 25-8 on the year and lost to BU all three times the two met this season. Baker is 8-3 against the Ravens in its last 11 meetings.
The Baker defense was stifling in the first quarter, holding BC to just nine first quarter points, but then BC outscored the 'Cats, 21-15, in the second quarter to enter halftime up, 30-28.
After a third quarter that saw Baker outscore the Ravens, 10-9, the Wildcats exploded in the fourth quarter to outscore BC, 26-12.
2016-17 Heart of America Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year Kelsey Larson led all players with 17 points and fellow senior Sydney Buchel joined her in double figures with 16.
Baker held the Ravens to just 30.6-percent from the floor and just 3-of-17 from three-point range on 17.6-percent.
Buchel led the team in rebounding with six and the 'Cats shot 11-of-14 from the free-throw line, good for 78.6-percent.
Baker will wait to find out what seed and what day they play in the First Round of the 2016-17 NAIA National Championship game on Wednesday, Mar. 8, as the NAIA National Office will release that information.
| Heart Post Season Tournament |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benedictine (Kan.) | 9 | 21 | 9 | 12 | 51 |
| Baker (Kan.) | 13 | 15 | 10 | 26 | 64 |
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