Sun Conference

Magical Run for Webber International Leads to Championship

2/23/2013 4:59:09 PM

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. - A night after taking down the tournament’s number one seed, fourth-seeded Webber International pulled off another upset defeating No. 2  Ave Maria, 56-53 in the finals of the 2013 Sun Conference Championship Presented by Shula’s Hotel and Golf Club, Saturday at the Fernandez Family Center on the St. Thomas University campus.  With the win, Webber International (15-13) receives an automatic bid to the NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Championship to be played March 6-12 in Sioux City, Iowa.
 
Ave Maria (21-9) led 32-26 at the half, but WIU came out of halftime with a renewed spirit and a 9-0 run to take a 35-32 lead three minutes into the second half.  Later in the half, the Warriors reeled off a 15-2 run to take a 52-42 lead with 7:30 remaining.  The Gyrenes would fight back to tie the game at 52-52 with 1:46 to play.  Back-to-back field goals by Jasmine Singleton and Alishia Kahan put the Warriors ahead by four points.  A free throw by Ave Maria’s Amy Myler cut the lead to three points with 1:04 to play.  Neither team scored in the final minute as WIU held on for the three-point victory.
 
Webber International was led by tournament MVP Yesenia Lora who scored 21 points and pulled down 10 rebounds.  Sarah Dileonardo came off the bench to score 13 points, and Singleton added 11 points for the Warriors.  Kahan came up big on the defensive end with four steals.
 
Myler led the Gyrenes with 13 points, 11 rebounds and four assists.  Emily Huber added 12 points, while Annie Artise produced 11 points and eight rebounds.
 
St. Thomas (27-3), the regular season Sun Conference champions with a league record of 14-0, were knocked out of the postseason tournament in an upset 64-61 overtime win by Webber International on Friday night.  The Bobcats and the Gyrenes will await word whether they advance to the NAIA National Championships when the 32-team field is announced on Wednesday.