WEBSTER GROVES - The top-seeded and back-to-back St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular champion Webster University Gorloks are set to begin their defense of its 2020 SLIAC Tournament title by playing host to eighth-seeded Blackburn College in one of four quarterfinal games of the 2021 SLIAC Women's Basketball Tournament on Wednesday, April 7 at 7 p.m. in Grant Gymnasium on the Webster campus. Per SLIAC rules due to the COVID pandemic, no fans will be allowed to attend any of the SLIAC Tournament games.

Tuesday's winner will advance to a semifinal match-up on Friday, April 9 against the lowest seeded team remaining in the tournament at 7 p.m. in Grant Gymnasium. The other quarterfinal games on Wednesday are No. 2 seeded Westminster (9-3 overall, 7-2 SLIAC) hosting No. 7 seeded Iowa Wesleyan (2-12 overall, 2-8 SLIAC), No. 3 seeded Greenville (8-9 overall, 6-3 SLIAC) hosting sixth-seeded Fontbonne (4-5 overall, 4-5 SLIAC) and No. 4 seeded Eureka (6-7 overall, 5-5 SLIAC) hosting No. 5 seeded Spalding (3-3 overall, 3-3 SLIAC). All of those quarterfinal games are scheduled for 7 p.m,. tip-offs. The championship game of the tournament will be held on Saturday, April 10 at 7 p.m. at the home court of the highest seeded team left in the tournament. 

Webster, who is making its league best 21st all-time appearance in this year's SLIAC Tournament, enters the postseason sporting a 9-1 overall record and an 8-1 record in the SLIAC as the Gorloks captured its second consecutive outright regular season league title following its 91-82 win on Saturday at Eureka. The Gorloks come into the SLIAC Tournament having won nine consecutive games since opening the 2020-21 season with a 71-66 loss at Greenville and the nine game winning streak is currently tied for the ninth longest active streak in NCAA Diviison III. Along with winning nine consecutive games, the Gorloks have also won 16 consecutive games on its homecourt and that 16 game streak is the fifth longest active streak in Division III. Webster hasn't lost at home since suffering an 89-82 overtime loss to Spalding on Dec. 5, 2019.

Meanwhile, Blackburn, who is making its first trip to the SLIAC Tournament since 2010, comes into the tournament having lost six straight games and are sporting a 1-9 overall record and a 1-9 mark in the shortened 2020-21 season to earn the No. 8 seed in the tournament. Blackburn's only win this season came at Fontbonne on March 9 as the Beavers earned a 66-60 victory. Since that game, the Beavers have dropped six straight games, including suffering a 93-41 loss to the Gorloks in Carlinville, Ill., on March 16. In that game, the Gorloks forced Blackburn into 40 turnovers that led to 44 points as the Gorloks scored three more off of Blackburn's turnovers than they scored in game. Four Gorloks scored in double figures in the game as sophomore forward Julie Baudendistel (St. Louis, Mo./Lindbergh) led the way with 17 points, while junior forward Addison Beussink (Jackson, Mo./Saxony Lutheran) added 16 points and nine rebounds. Freshman forward Emily Ederer (Doniphan, Mo./Doniphan) posted a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds and senior guard Kiara Rhines (Glendale, Ariz./Ironwood) had 11 points. 

Webster comes into the SLIAC Tournament as the highest scoring team in the league as they are averaging 83.4 points per game and have scored 90-plus points in its last three games and has tallied 80 or more points in seven of its 10 games on the year. In addition, Webster leads the league and is one of the Top 5 field goal shooting teams in Division III as the Gorloks are shooting 47.6 percent from the field, but just 29 percent from the 3-point line. Defensively, the Gorloks are allowing 61.1 points per game and have held six of their 10 foes under 70 points on the year, but has allowed 84 and 82 points over its last two games to close the regular season. In addition, the Gorloks are also forcing 27.6 turnovers per game and lead the league in steals as they are averaging 16.3 per game and are blocking 3.4 shots per game. 

Leading the way offensively for the Gorloks are Beussink and Baudendistel as they are the No. 1 and No. 3 scorers in the league as they are averaging a combined 20.5 points per game and are both shooting over 53 percent from the field. 

Beussink, who was earned the final two SLIAC Player of the Week honors this season, is the team's leading scorer as she is averaging a SLIAC-best 22.1 points per game and has scored 29 or more points in her last three games, including scoring a single game school record 35 points at home against Fontbonne on March 27. Along with her 22.1 points per game, Beussink is averaging 9.1 rebounds, 1.3 blocks and 2.2 steals per game and is shooting 63.5 percent from the field, which is fifth-best in Division III and 81 percent from the free throw line. Beussink, who has had a team-best five double-doubles, has scored in double figures in eight straight games and has had double-doubles in three of her last four games to close the regular season. 

Meanwhile, Baudendistel is third in the league in scoring as she is averaging 18.9 points per game and has scored in double figures in all 10 games, including tallying 20 or more points in five of those 10 games, including scoring 20 or more points in three of her final four games to end the regular season. Along with her 18.9 points per game, Baudendistel is also averaging 5.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.0 steals per game and is shooting 53 percent from the field and is second in the league in 3-point field goal percentage as she is shooting 43 percent and 86 percent at the free throw line. Baudendistel has hit a team-leading 15 3-pointers and is fourth in steals with 20 and fourth in assists with 20. 

Two other Gorloks are averaging in double figures on the year - junior guard Hannah Cottrell (Steelville, Mo./Steelville) and senior guard Naomi Johnson (St. Louis, Mo./Greenville University). On the season, Cottrell is averaging 10.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 3.1 steals per game and is shooting 46 percent from the field, 40 percent from the 3-point line and 76 percent from the free throw line and has had six games of scoring in double figures and dished out seven or more assists in four of 10 games, while Johnson is averaging 10.4 points, 1.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game and is shooting 42 percent from the field and is second in made treys with nine. 
 

Webster is coached by Jordan Olufson, who is in his 13th season at the helm of the Gorloks. In his 13 years at Webster, Olufson has compiled a 196-131 record and is 136-73 in SLIAC regular season games. His 196 wins are the most in program history. He has led Webster to nine winning seasons, including five straight winning seasons, 10 SLIAC Tournament appearances, two regular season SLIAC titles, three SLIAC Tournament titles and three NCAA Tournament appearances in 2011, 2018 and 2020. In addition, Blackburn is forcing 19.4 turnovers per game and is averaging 3.6 blocked shots per game. 

Leading the way for Blackburn is sophomore guard Aryanna Harris, who is averaging 13.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game and is shooting 40 percent from the field, while freshman guard/forward Mariah Hopson is averaging 12.6 points and 3.9 rebounds per game and is shooting 37 percent from the field, 42 percent from the 3-point line and 82 percent from the free throw line and junior forward Courtnee Riley is averaging 9.6 points per game, but leads the team in rebounding at 4.8 boards per game. 

Blackburn head coach Nick Morgan is in his second season with the Beavers and has compiled a 6-28 overall record and has a 4-24 record in the SLIAC. 

Webster has posted a 12-16 record all-time record in the SLIAC Tournament and is making its fifth consecutive appearance and ninth in the last 11 seasons. Webster has won two of the last three SLIAC Tournament titles as they won in 2018 and 2020 and three times overall as they also won in 2011 and were the runner-up in 2012 and 2013. Last season, Webster was the No. 1 seed and opened the tournament with a 78-63 win in the semifinals over Greenville and then won the championship following a 65-51 win over Spalding University. 

Since the tournament was reinstated by the league in 2005, the No. 1 seed has won the title a total of 12 times, including three times in the last four years has the No. 1 seeded brought home the championship trophy. In fact, Webster has won two of its four tournament titles as the No. 3 seed and claimed the title as both a No. 2 seed and a No. 1 seed.

The eight teams that are playing in this year's SLIAC Tournament have won a combined 20 championships with Blackburn having won six titles. In addition to Blackburn's six titles, Webster has won four titles, while Fontbonne has won three titles. Greenvile, Spalding and Westminster have each taken home two tournament titles, while Eureka has won one title. Iowa Wesleyan, who is making its first appearance in the tournament, have never won a tournament title. In addition, the eight teams have posted a combined record of 75-73 all-time record in the tournament as Fontbonne has won the most tournament games with 20 as the Griffins are 20-16 in the tournament, while Blackburn is 17-6, Webster is 12-16 and Westminster is 11-16.