Simpson avenges early loss, beats Wartburg

INDIANOLA, Iowa – Stacey Schutjer (Titonka, Iowa/Woden-Crystal Lake Titonka) led three Simpson players in double figures with 19 points and the Storm avenged their only conference loss of the season with an 84-63 win over Wartburg Saturday afternoon at Cowles Fieldhouse.

The win is the 10th in a row for the Storm (19-3, 12-1 IIAC) and gives the team 27-consecutive regular seaon wins against conference opponents on its home floor. Simpson's last loss this season was a 20-point defeat against Wartburg Jan. 6.

Simpson now owns a two-game lead over the Knights (16-5, 10-2) in the Iowa Conference standings with three games remaining.

Jeni Hegstrom (Perry, Iowa/Perry) scored a career-high 15 points on 6 of 8 shooting and Amy Hamilton (Ames, Iowa/Ames) added 14 points and five steals for Simpson.

Abi Weidemann came off the bench to lead the Knights with 19 points.

Leading by 12 at halftime, the Storm opened the second half with a 16-6 run.

Hegstron and Schutjer controlled the paint, accounting for 14 points in the deciding rally. On the game, Simpson outscored Wartburg 38-18 in the middle.

Leading 28-22 with 6:30 to go in the half, the Storm mounted a 14-5 run in less than three minutes, expanding their lead to 42-27. Hegstrom's three-point play sparked the run, which included a pair of treys from reserve Kelsie Reeves (Des Moines, Iowa/Lincoln).

As a team, Simpson shot 51.7 percent from the field to Wartburg's 35.

Simpson plays its final home game of the season Wednesday, Feb. 10 against Buena Vista (12-8, 6-5 IIAC) at 6 p.m.