Donovan Vickers scored 11 of his game-high 20 points in the second half Sunday to lead the second-seeded men’s basketball team to an 82-68 victory over Ferris State, booking its place in the NCAA Division II Midwest Region Championship final for the second straight year. The Tritons will be looking to capture their first regional title since 1972 when they take on McKendree at 6 p.m. CDT on Tuesday in Indianapolis. (Photo by Jacob Walton)
Men’s Basketball
The University of Missouri–St. Louis men’s basketball team will be looking to capture its first regional title since 1972 when it takes on Great Lakes Valley Conference rival McKendree at 6 p.m. CDT on Tuesday in the NCAA Division II Midwest Region Championship in Indianapolis. The second-seeded Tritons advanced to the regional final for the second consecutive season after double-digit victories over seventh-seeded Wisconsin-Parkside and sixth-seeded Ferris State in successive days at Nicoson Hall at the University of Indianapolis. Isaiah Fuller led three players in double figures with 26 points and went 11 for 14 from the field as UMSL beat the Rangers 85-60 in Saturday’s quarterfinal. The Tritons connected on 11 of 24 3-pointers in the game. Coach Bob Sundvold‘s team used a 12-3 second half run to take charge in Sunday’s 82-68 semifinal victory over the Bulldogs. Donovan Vickers, who had 16 points against Wisconsin-Parkside, scored a team-high 20 against Ferris State with 11 of his points coming in the second half. UMSL outscored the Bulldogs 45-29 after trailing 39-37 at halftime. Bowen Sandquist scored 18 points and was 5 for 8 from beyond the arc. The Tritons connected on 12 of 23 3-pointers. UMSL lost to Hillsdale 73-63 in the last year’s Midwest Region final. This year, the team will be taking on eighth-seeded McKendree, which beat UMSL in the regular-season finale at the Mark Twain Athletic Center and again in last week’s GLVC Tournament final. The Tritons (23-10) did beat McKendree 83-73 on the road on Jan. 12. The Bearcats (20-12) have won eight straight games and knocked off top-seeded UIndy and fifth-seeded Northern Michigan en route to the regional final.
Men’s and Women’s Swimming
Senior swimmers Jon Osa and Zara Konstapel each captured first-team All-American honors while competing in the NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving Championships last week at the Indiana University Natatorium in Indianapolis. Osa, a native of Deba, Spain, recorded a time of 47.78 seconds in the final of the men’s 100-yard backstroke to place sixth, the highest finish by a Triton since the program was brought back in 2014. Konstapel, a native of Doetinchem, Netherlands, captured first-team All-American honors for the second straight year in the 100-yard breaststroke, placing sixth with a time of 1 minute, 2.59 seconds after finishing seventh a year earlier. Osa also earned two honorable mention All-American honors by placing fifth in the consolation final for the 200-yard backstroke and teaming with Aiden Clark, David Reynolds and Austin Stevenson to place 15th in the 200-yard freestyle relay. Konstapel, meanwhile, received honorable mention All-American honors after finishing in fifth place in the consolation final of the 200-yard breaststroke. Conley Savage secured honorable mention All-American honors in the 200-yard butterfly by placing 13th in the event after posting a time of 1:47.79 in the consolation final.
Men’s Golf
The 18th-ranked Tritons placed third in last week’s Las Vegas Desert Classic after posting a combined score of 876 over three days at Boulder Creek Golf Club in Boulder City, Nevada. Senior Joel Sylven finished as the tournament runner-up and earned his second consecutive GLVC Player of the Week honor when he posted a 54-hole score of 207, including scores of 66 and 68 in the tournament’s final two rounds. Sophomore Ian McCrary led a second UMSL squad to a 13th-place team finish in a field that featured eight teams ranked in the Top 25 in the latest Bushnell/Golfweek Division II Coaches Poll. UMSL’s B team shot a combined 915 with McCray posting a three-round total of 223 to tie for 22nd place. He was one shot ahead of Juan Antonio Padilla, who finished in a tie for 24th with a score of 224 as a member of the top UMSL team. Freshman Leo Baudry tied for 28th with a score of 225. Lee University’s Beck Burnette won medalist honors finishing with a 54-hole score of 204 while Colorado Christian took home the team title with a three-day score of 870. UMSL is idle until March 27, when it will open play in the Tennessee River Rumble, hosted by Lincoln Memorial University, in Lenoir City, Tennesseee.
Baseball
UMSL secured a 9-5 victory over Rockhurst in Game 2 of Sunday’s doubleheader after rallying from a 4-2 deficit and completed the program’s first four-game series sweep since 2015. The Tritons won the first three games of the series by scores of 4-2 and 5-3 in Friday’s doubleheader and 8-0 in Sunday’s first game. Designated hitter Brandon Olion went 5-9 with 4 RBIs in Sunday’s sweep, including a three-run triple during UMSL’s decisive five-run eighth inning in Game 2. The Tritons got strong starts from pitchers Ryan Berry and Brady Krile in Friday’s doubleheader. The two combined to hold the Hawks to two runs on nine hits with 13 strikeouts in 10 2/3 innings. Olion also drove in three runs in the two games. UMSL (11-9) will visit Maryville on Tuesday in its only game of the week.
Softball
The Tritons went 5-3 over the past week in The Spring Games in Leesburg, Florida, beating Walsh (6-1), Kentucky Wesleyan (6-5 in nine innings), Edinboro (9-0 in six innings), Ashland (10-2 in five innings) and Holy Family (7-2) and losing to Grand Valley State (5-1), Northwood (8-1) and Saginaw Valley State (3-0). Shortstop Irene Travis and third baseman McKenzie Lamos combined for 22 hits and 16 RBI at the top of the lineup. Pitcher Mimi Bradley struck out 14 batters in shutting out Edinboro, one of two victories she had during the week. UMSL (10-10) will complete its time in Florida with games against Purdue Northwest and Franklin Pierce on Monday and Hillsdale and New Haven on Tuesday before opening GLVC play with a home doubleheader against Quincy on Saturday. The Tritons will also play host to Illinois Springfield in a doubleheader on Sunday.
Women’s Tennis
UMSL beat Harding 4-2 Friday afternoon in a dual meet played at the Forest Lake Tennis Club in Chesterfield, Missouri. The Tritons won the first four singles matches to win the dual. Anna Domingo beat Grace Dodd 6-3, 6-3 in the first singles contest, Maja Lietzau followed with a 7-6 (5), 4-6, 10-6 win over Karli Roux at No. 2 singles, Hannah Tse knocked off Lina Romero 6-2, 6-3 in the third singles contest, and Anna Favaron beat Jing Yang 6-2, 4-6, 10-7 at No. 4 singles. UMSL (5-2) will travel to Bolivar, Missouri, to take on Southwest Baptist on Saturday.
Men’s Tennis
The Tritons were swept in their dual meet against Harding on Friday at the Forest Lake Tennis Club in Chesterfield, Missouri. Jose Mayorga, Juan Vigil, Raphael Kerndl, Joshua Mackey, and Tanin Ramnath all lost in straight sets, while Pascal Maclean-Wood fell 4-6, 6-1, 2-10 at No. 6 singles. UMSL faces Southeastern Oklahoma State on Monday at the UMSL Tennis Courts and will travel to Bolivar, Missouri, to play Southwest Baptist on Saturday.
