Fifth-year senior Benjamin VandenBrink raced to a fifth-place finish in the men’s 5,000-meter run at the GLVC Indoor Track and Field Championships. (Photo by Luke Rinne/UMSL Athletics)
Men’s and Women’s Track and Field
Benjamin VandenBrink and Bailey Riley each registered fifth-place finishes for the University of Missouri–St. Louis track and field teams over the weekend at the Great Lakes Valley Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships held Saturday and Sunday at Indianapolis’ Athletics and Recreation Center. VandenBrink, a fifth-year senior, ran to a fifth-place showing in the men’s 5,000-meter race, finishing with a time of 15 minutes, 4.10 seconds. The freshman Riley, meanwhile, placed fifth in the men’s triple jump with a top mark of 45 feet, 8 inches. They were two of six top-10 finishes by the Tritons in the meet. Rashad Smith finished sixth in the triple jump with a leap of 45-7, and Caleb Cody-Jackson was sixth in the men’s 400-meter race with a time of 49.23 seconds. Cody-Jackson also placed seventh in the men’s 200-meter dash in 22.08 seconds, and the distance medley relay team of Caleb Leach, Gavin Love, Sean Keys and Will Kaempfe was also seventh with a time of 10:28.49. On the women’s side, Kennedy Moore and Melissa White each competed in the triple jump, finishing 12th and 16th, respectively. Moore had a top mark of 33-11 1/2. That ends the indoor season for both teams.
Men’s Basketball
The Tritons are heading into the GLVC Tournament riding a seven-game winning streak after rallying to beat Drury 66-60 Thursday on Pack the Stands night – part of homecoming festivities – at the Mark Twain Athletic Center. UMSL closed the game on a 7-0 run in the final two minutes. Savon Wykle‘s free throw started the late charge to tie the game at 60. Matt Enright, who finished with a game-high 20 points, lifted the Tritons into the lead with a 3-pointer with 1:08 to play. Emanuel Prospere II and Janeir Harris combined to make 3 of 4 free throws in the final 16 seconds to close out the victory. Prospere finished with 18 points, and Troy Glover II added 14 points, 10 rebounds, three blocked shots and two steals. Glover, who shot 7 for 8 from the field, posted his seventh double-double in the past eight games. UMSL held Drury (13-13, 8-11 GLVC) to 39.7% shooting. The Tritons (17-10, 15-5 GLVC) locked up the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament. They will meet seventh-seeded Rockhurst in a first-round game at 2:15 p.m. Thursday at Lindenwood University’s Hyland Arena in St. Charles, Missouri.
Women’s Basketball
UMSL couldn’t overcome cold shooting in a 62-55 Pack the Stands night loss to Drury on Thursday in the regular-season finale at the Mark Twain Athletic Center. The Tritons shot just 32.3% from the field, including 5 for 20 from 3-point range, while dropping their second straight game. Caitlyn Daniels scored a game-high 26 points to lead the Panthers (20-6, 16-3 GLVC) in the victory. Mara Rieder scored a team-high 15 points off the bench to pace UMSL in the loss. Katie Hamill added 11 points but was 4 for 13 from the field. Morgan Ramthun finished with nine points and 13 rebounds. The Tritons (19-8, 13-7 GLVC) still secured the No. 4 seed in this week’s GLVC Tournament. UMSL will take on fifth-seeded Maryville in the opening round at 6 p.m. Friday at Hyland Arena in St. Charles, Missouri.
Baseball
The Tritons began the week by losing 10-4 in the opening game of a doubleheader against Davenport, but they responded by winning their next five games, edging the Panthers 2-1 in the second game of Monday’s twin bill in Edwardsville, Illinois, and then sweeping a four-game weekend series with Walsh at CarShield Field in O’Fallon, Missouri. UMSL beat the Cavaliers 19-10 and 9-8 on Friday and 6-5 and 8-7 on Sunday. Three pitchers combined to hold Davenport to two hits in seventh innings in Monday’s victory, and Barrett Rose drove in two runs with double in the fifth inning to lift the Tritons to victory. UMSL combined for 58 hits in four games against winless Walsh. Rose, Andrew Buescher, Luke Saxton, Noah Tomaras and Mitch Bonczkowksi all homered in the series opener for the Tritons. Buescher and Garrett Strenger each hit balls over the fence in Game 2, but the outcome was decided when Rose was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in a three-run seventh. Cooper Blythe hit a home run, and Cade Grevengoed scored the winning run on a wild pitch in Game 3 after starter. Bryce Nicolay pitched five shutout innings and struck out a career-high 10 batters. Grevengoed had three hits, and he and Jake Isaacs each drove in two runs as UMSL completed the sweep. The Tritons (10-5) open conference play with a four-game series at Missouri S&T beginning on Friday.
Softball
UMSL went 3-1 over the weekend in doubleheaders against Northwood and Kentucky Wesleyan, splitting with the Timberwolves on Saturday and sweeping Panthers on Sunday. The Tritons were blanked 3-0 in the first game of the weekend, but they bounced back with three straight wins by scores of 7-3, 7-4 and 4-0. All four games were played at Plummer Family Park in Edwardsville, Illinois. May Pasqualini combined for five hits and drove in three runs to lead the Tritons. Pasqualini drove in two runs in Saturday’s victory, and she scored the first run and drove in one in Sunday’s second game. Ashley Borowitz tossed a four-hit shutout in that victory and registered five strikeouts. Ashley Ware did not allow an earned run in 11 2/3 innings on the weekend and had two wins. Other standouts included Rylie Buchanan, who hit a pinch-hit three-run homer that snapped a 4-4 tie in the fifth inning of Sunday’s first game. UMSL will open conference play at home next weekend with doubleheaders against Southwest Baptist and Rockhurst on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
Women’s swimming
Six women’s swimmers earned berths to NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving Championships, which run March 12-15 at the IU Natatorium on the campus of IU Indianapolis. Sophomore Justice Beard will return to the NCAA championships after after earning first-team All-America honors in the 1,650-yard freestyle race and honorable mention All-America accolades in the 1,000-yard freestyle in 2024. She will compete in the 200, 500, 1,000 and 1,650 freestyle events, and she ranks third in the 1,650, fourth in the 1,000, sixth in the 500 and 18th in the 200. She is also a member of UMSL’s 400-yard freestyle relay team, which qualified. Ella Lantz will also make her second NCAA championship appearance and will compete in the 100- and 200-yard backstroke events and also join Beard on the 400 freestyle relay team. Lantz is ranked 18th in the 100 backstroke and 31st in the 200 backstroke. Kate Nelson, Romina Itzkovich, Madison Bottorff and Audrey Lantz qualified to swim in the 200-yard freestyle relay. Nelson and Audrey Lantz will join Beard and Ella Lantz on the 400 freestyle relay.
