Kirkwood Womens Basketball

Usher sparks No. 1 Eagles to title

EAST PEORIA, Ill. - Olivia Usher played one of the best games of her young college basketball career Friday and helped the top-ranked Kirkwood Eagles defeat No. 19 Illinois Central, 68-52, in the championship game of the Illinois Central tournament.

Usher, a freshman from Cedar Rapids Prairie, popped in four 3-pointers and led the Eagles with 14 points. She also collected five assists, five steals and four rebounds as Kirkwood raised its perfect record to  15-0.

Shaneequah Watkins contributed 11 points, three rebounds, three  steals, two assists and two blocks. Deleyah Harris furnished 10 points and six rebounds, while Tay Wilson pitched in with 10 points and five assists.

Harris, Wilson and Simone Goods were named to the all-tournament team.

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Goods leads No. 1 Eagles into finals

EAST PEORIA, Ill. - Simone Goods scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds Thursday as the top-ranked Kirkwood Eagles spanked Sauk Valley, 83-51, in the semifinals of the Illinois Central holiday tournament.

Kirkwood (14-0) will face 19th-ranked Illinois Central (11-4) in the championship game Friday at 4 p.m.

Shaneequah Watkins stuffed the stat sheet for the Eagles with 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, three blocks and two steals. Deleyah Harris also had a well-rounded game with 10 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Tay Tay Wilson and Megan Axcell contributed 11 points for Kirkwood. Axcell hit three 3-pointers.

KIRKWOOD (83): Harris 4 0-0 10, T. Wilson 4 2-2 11, Puok 0 0-0 0, Hedges 0 0-0 0, Axcell 3 2-2 11, Schmidt 0 0-0 0, Ajak 1 2-2 5, Taylor 0 0-0 0, Watkins 4 4-7 12, Voss 2 0-0 5, Cotton 2 0-0 4, C. Wilson 1  0-0 3, Goods 7 3-3 17, Usher 1 0-0 3, Achenbach 1 0-0 2. Totals 30 13-16 83.

3-point goals - Kirkwood 10 (Axcell 3, Harris 2, T.Wilson 1, Ajak 1, Voss 1, C.Wilson 1, Usher 1).

No. 1 Kirkwood women win 13th straight

EAST PEORIA, Ill. - The top-ranked Kirkwood women's basketball team rolled to its most lopsided victory of the season Wednesday afternoon  with an 87-31 romp past McHenry at the Illinois Central tournament.

The Eagles (13-0) have outscored their opponents 1,040 to 600 this season. They are averaging 80 points and allowing only 46.1 for a winning margin of nearly 34 points per game.

Kirkwood has won its 13 games this year by 56, 53, 41, 41, 39, 36, 35, 30, 28, 28, 26, 14 and 13 points.

Simone Goods led four Eagles into double figures Wednesday with 15 points and eight rebounds. Olivia Schmidt scored 13 points, Deleyah Harris 12 and Megan Axcell 11. Schmidt and Axcell each had three 3-pointers.

Harris, who was named the national Division II junior college player of the week last week, had four steals for Kirkwood. Shaneequah Watkins also had four steals.

Rylee Voss and Olivia Usher grabbed nine rebounds.

KIRKWOOD (87): Axcell 4 0-0 11, Harris 6 0-0 12, T.Wilson 2 2-2 6, Puok 2 0-0 4, Hedges 0 0-0 0, Schmidt 4 2-2 13, Ajak 1 2-2 4, Taylor 1 0-0 2, Watkins 3 0-0 6, Voss 3 0-2 6, Cotton 1 0-0 2, C.Wilson 0 0-0 0, Goods 6 3-4 15, Usher 2 0-0 4, Achenbach 1 0-0 2. Totals 36 9-12 87

3-point goals - Kirkwood 6 (Axcell 3, Schmidt 3).

No. 1 Kirkwood women cruise to 12-0

SOUTH HOLLAND, Ill. - Another day, another lopsided victory.

That was the story for the top-ranked Kirkwood women's basketball team Saturday as it cruised to a 74-33 victory over South Suburban in the South Suburban tournament.

Awal Ajak popped in three 3-pointers and led the Eagles with 15 points. Simone Goods collected 10 points and seven rebounds and was named the MVP of the tournament.

Shaneequah Watkins also scored 10 points for Kirkwood. Deleyah Harris had seven points and was named to the all-tournament team.

Kirkwood raised its record to 12-0.

KIRKWOOD (74): Harris 2 3-4 7, T.Wilson 1 0-0 2, Puok 0 0-0 0, Hedges  1 0-0 2, Axcell 3 0-0 8, Schmidt 0 0-0 0, Ajak 6 0-0 15, Taylor 0 0-0 0, Watkins 4 0-0 10, Voss 3 0-0 6, Cotton 1 0-0 2, C.Wilson 2 0-0 5,  Goods 3 4-5 10, Usher 0 3-4 3, Achenbach 1 2-2 4. Totals 27 12-15 74.

3-point goals - Kirkwood 8 (Ajak 3, Axcell 2, Watkins 2, C.Wilson 1).