Women’s Basketball: Rockhurst hosts GLVC opener

The Rockhurst Hawks open their Great Lakes Valley Conference season Thursday against Saint Joseph’s in a 5:30 p.m. matchup at Mason-Halpin Field House.

The Hawks, 2-5 overall, will be aiming for their first victory since defeating Saint Mary on Nov. 26. Rockhurst suffered a 71-64 loss at home to McPherson in its last game on Dec. 15.

Saint Joseph’s, 1-7 overall, is coming off a 79-57 victory at Oakland City on Dec. 28. Lexy Carson, a 5-8 junior guard, leads the Pumas in scoring (14.3 per game) and rebounding (5.4 per game). She ranks eighth in scoring in the GLVC. Kiki Wilson, a 5-6 sophomore guard, is averaging 14.0 points and a team-high 4.5 assists.

Allison Streich paces Rockhurst in scoring (10.6 per game). The junior forward ranks 17th in rebounding, seventh in blocked shots (1.1 per game) and second in offensive rebounds (4.1 per game) in the GLVC. Senior forward Kara McFarland is among the conference leaders in rebounding (6.4 per game) and defensive rebounds (4.7 per game).

Saint Joseph’s leads Rockhurst 4-1 in the all-time series. The Pumas won the last meeting, 53-51, at Saint Joseph’s on Dec. 5, 2009. This will be the third meeting between the teams played on the Hawks’ home floor in their six meetings.

Thursday’s game can be heard on 610 Sports AM (www.610Sports.com), with Mark Miller delivering the call, tape delayed at 9:30 p.m.

Rockhurst will continue its two-game GLVC homestand at 1 p.m. Saturday against Indianapolis. The seventh-ranked Greyhounds will take a 7-1 record into a Thursday night matchup at William Jewell before visiting Rockhurst.

HAWK NOTES

*Streich has posted two double-doubles this season. She collected 16 points and 10 rebounds against Ottawa on Dec. 15.

*The Hawks rank first in offensive rebounding (17.7) and third in blocked shots (4.7 per game) in the GLVC.

*Freshman guard Kendall Hart scored a career-high 20 points against Baker on Nov. 16.

*Freshman guard Lauren Meyers has averaged 10.8 points in her last four games. She scored a career-high 13 at Missouri Western on Dec. 1.