Sports Shorts
Women’s basketball
Behind strong efforts from Katie Paganelli and Janisha Gearlds, the Billikens snapped a five game losing streak at home on Feb. 10 against LaSalle University.
Paganelli, a senior, led all scorers with 19 points while Gearlds, a sophomore, contributed a career-high 11 points and nine rebounds.
The win brings the Billikens to 8-16 overall and 2-7 in Atlantic 10 play. LaSalle falls to 5-19 on the season and remains winless in the A-10, now 0-9.
SLU benefitted from advantages on the glass and at the free throw line. The Billikens outrebounded the Explorers 46-26, including 22 offensive rebounds. LaSalle only made eight of its 13 free throw attempts, while SLU connected on 18 out of 23 attempts.
Gearlds capped off her best game as a Billiken with six assists and two steals, while only committing one turnover.
Paganelli was 4-of-7 from 3-point range, bringing her career total to 159. She is now only six treys away from taking over second place in SLU’s all-time list.
The team travels to Philadelphia to take on Saint Joseph’s University on Feb. 13.
Coach Majerus
Head men’s basketball coach Rick Majerus did not care to talk about his team’s winning effort over Saint Joseph’s on Feb. 9 during a postgame press conference.
Instead, Majerus took the opportunity to again voice his displeasure over Saint Louis University’s affiliation with the Atlantic 10 Conference.
“The answer is, first, get the hell out of the league,” Majerus said.
The head coach again expressed his concern over his students’ academics. Snow storms will likely strand the Billikens in Philadelphia until at least Friday, Feb, 12. The team has been in the city of brotherly love since Feb. 6.
“Nothing means more to me than the academic success of our players. We have compromised our players’ academic success … Even if it was the best of weather, we’re missing an entire week of school,” Majerus said.
Majerus has been very vocal this season concerning SLU’s position in the Atlantic 10. He feels the travel schedule and cost are too big of problems. A switch to the Missouri Valley Conference is his preferred solution.
““Most successful people in life make mistakes and say, ‘You know what, I made a mistake and I’m not going to let that happen again.’ So, the school is afraid to say they made a mistake, that’s all,” Majerus said.
Softball
Saint Louis University’s softball team will open the 2010 campaign on the road on Feb. 13 against the University of Western Carolina.
The match up is part of the First Pitch Classic hosted by Georgia State University in Atltanta, Ga. The Billikens will take on the hosts later that same day.
Saint Louis returns six position starters, two pitchers and six additional letterwinners from last year’s team that went 22-33 overall and 12-6 in Atlantic 10 Conference play.
Men’s basketball
During halftime of the men’s basketball game against Dayton University on Feb 13, SLU will honor the 1994 and 1995 Billiken basketball teams.
The teams, helmed by head coach Charlie Spoonhour, revitalized the program during the 1990s. The ‘93-’94 team gave SLU its first NCAA tournament berth in more than 30 years, while the ‘94-’95 team advanced to the second round of the tournament, knocking off the University of Minnesota 64-61.
The game is part of the Billiken Blue Out tradition.
