WAVERLY, Iowa - The second ranked Wartburg women's basketball team will try to bounce back from its first loss of the season when it battles Westminster College in a nonconference contest on Friday, Feb. 5 with tip-off set for 6:15 p.m. inside Levick Arena. Wartburg has defeated the Blue Jays the past four times they have met including a 91-66 victory last season. 

Friday, Feb. 5 - 6:15 p.m. - Waverly, Iowa - Levick Arena
Wartburg Knights (7-1, 2-1 A-R-C) vs. Westminster College (0-0, 0-0 SLIAC) 

Series Record: Wartburg leads 4-0
Previous Meetings: 
Nov. 24, 2019 -- W, 91-66 (Fulton, Mo.) 
Nov. 25, 2014 -- W, 75-68 (Waverly)
Nov. 26, 2013 -- W, 74-61 (Fulton, Mo.)
Dec. 29, 2011 -- W, 59-50 (Waverly)

Attendance Policy
Two people per each participant (student-athlete/coach/staff member) will be permitted to attend basketball, volleyball, and wrestling home events inside Levick Arena. Seating for spectators will take place in the west bleachers across from the team benches. 
 
SPECTATORS WILL BE REQUIRED TO FOLLOW CAMPUS MASKING AND SOCIAL DISTANCING GUIDELINES. LEARN MORE HERE.

Season Notes
The Knights are averaging 76 points per game and have a scoring margin of plus 28.3 while shooting 42% from the floor, 30.7% from 3-point land and 61.1% from the charity stripe. The Orange & Black are out rebounding their opponents by 17 per game and have an assist to turnover ratio of 1.2. 

The Knights have been led offensively by forwards Payton Draper and Jaedon Murphy who have averaged 12 and 11.3 points per game, respectively. Senior guard Ally Conrad and Draper are averaging a team-high 6.1 rebounds while Conrad stands alone in the assist column with a team-best 3.6 helpers per contest. 

After suffering its first loss of the campaign, Wartburg now sits in a three-way tie for second place in the American Rivers Conference with the University of Dubuque and Central College. Simpson College is in first place with a 4-0 overall record and 3-0 ledger in conference play.

Last Time Out
The No. 2-ranked Wartburg women's basketball team suffered its first defeat of the 2020-21 season, falling 48-46 at Coe College Wednesday evening. The Knights, now 7-1 overall and 2-1 during American Rivers Conference action, struggled to find a consistent shooting stride. Wartburg recorded season lows in field goal percentage, going 16-of-60 from the floor along with a season low 5-29 clip from beyond the arc.

In the first half, the Knights committed 10 turnovers on which the Kohawks capitalized off of with 14 points. A pair of baskets from freshman Sara Faber near the one-minute mark of the second quarter trimmed the Coe lead to 24-21 heading into the break.

In the final frame, back-to-back fastbreak layups by Macy Harris gave the Knights a 41-38 lead with 6:46 remaining, the Knights' largest lead since early on in the contest.

With under five minutes left in the game, Draper increased her team-leading point total to 10 with a pair of consecutive field goals to lead Coe 46-43. However, it stood as the final points of the night for Wartburg. Meanwhile, the home team tied the game with a three-point layup and free throw with 1:08 left and added a layup to claim the lead 14 seconds on the clock.

After a Knights' timeout, a final look from beyond the arc from Murphy and a Wartburg missed jumper was off the mark. 

Westminster College
The Blue Jays are yet to compete in a game this season and are coming off a 2019-20 campaign that saw them finish 12-13 overall and 11-7 in the SLIAC. 

A year ago, Westminster posted an average of 73.9 points per game and had a scoring margin of negative 2.9. The Blue Jays concluded the campaign with a shooting percentage of 39.2% from the field, 33.6% from long range and 73.6% from the charity stripe. They also had an assist to turnover ratio of -.6 and were out rebounded by their opponents by an average of 1.2 boards per contest.

Guard Reese Arnold returns for her junior season after leading the program in points per game last year with 13.8 on a 42.4% clip from the floor. Also averaging double figures in scoring during the 2019-20 campaign are returning starters senior guard Kallee Dowler (12.8) and junior forward Abbie Reece (10.8). Westminster's biggest loss of the offseason was senior forward Mikalyn Callahan who recorded 10.8 points per game and 9.3 rebounds. 

The Blue Jays are coached by Talisha Washington in her second season at the helm.