Monmouth College basketball is back in full swing following a short holiday break.
The Fighting Scots men returned to the floor last Tuesday with a home nonconference matchup against Aurora. Monmouth had chances late, even holding a 71-70 lead with under two minutes to play, but couldn’t get the key bucket down the stretch, falling 78-74.
The Scots then hit the road Saturday for a quick trip to Mount Vernon to face Cornell, their first Midwest Conference game in nearly three weeks. Monmouth entered the contest a perfect 3-0 in league play, while the Rams were still searching for their first conference win. Despite shooting struggles, the Scots grinded out a 70-67 victory.
The win moves Monmouth to 9-4 overall and 4-0 in Midwest Conference play, putting the Scots in a tie for first place with Grinnell.
On the women’s side, Monmouth resumed play with a nonconference trip to Eureka College, where the Scots picked up a big road win. Senior and Knoxville High School graduate Kynlee Stearns turned in one of the best individual performances in program history, says Sports Information Director Nathan Baliva.
The Scots followed that up with a road trip to Dominican University the next day, where Monmouth was unable to repeat last month’s home win, falling to the Stars 60-44.
After a few days of practice, the women returned to conference play Saturday against Cornell, with both teams looking for their first Midwest Conference victory. Monmouth struggled offensively and fell to the Rams 65-29, dropping the Scots to 4-9 overall and 0-4 in league play.
With less than two months remaining in the season, both Monmouth squads now enter the heart of their conference schedules. The Scots will be back at Glennie Gym Wednesday night hosting Ripon College. The men tip off at 5:30, followed by the women at approximately 7:30.
Both teams will wrap up the week Saturday with a road trip to Beloit College, with the men tipping at 1 p.m. and the women to follow.
