Iowa Wesleyan basketball swept by Cornell

MT. PLEASANT - Neither Iowa Wesleyan basketball team could hang with visiting Cornell College when the Rams visited Olan G. Ruble Arena this weekend. The Tiger men fell 75-51 on Saturday, and the women dropped their game 67-50 on Sunday.

The Tiger men were a little rusty in the first half. Cornell Dominated the first 20 minutes, leading by as much as 21 before the Iowa Wesleyan was able to trim the deficit down to 15, at 38-23, just before halftime.

Iowa Wesleyan rallied to cut the Rams' lead to single digits in the second half. Jett Tjaden nailed a 3-pointer with 15:17 left in the game and it was a whole new ballgame, with Cornell's lead at 43-34. The Rams responded with a dunk by Markus Quirk on the other end, and Iowa Wesleyan never got any closer.

The Rams eventually built their lead back up to nearly 30 points. Former Mt. Pleasant standout Jordan Magnani knocked down a 3-pointer with 3:05 left to give Cornell their largest lead, at 73-44.

Kaleb Cresswell led Iowa Wesleyan with 14 points and three assists in the loss. Alex Dentlinger scored seven points. Marvin Saintolien, Jett Tjaden and Jared Arellano scored five apiece. David Seber had five. Jarryd Fernandes scored four, and Sy Sanchez had three.

Magnani scored 10 points for Cornell and also coled the squad with three steals.

One day later, the Iowa Wesleyan women had their chance at the Rams, but Cornell was too much once again. The Rams led 24-16 after one quarter, 40-25 at halftime and 54-31 after three quarters. The Tigers outscored The Rams 19-13 in the final period.

Anija Simmons led Iowa Wesleyan with 22 points and three steals. Morgan McCrea finished with 10 points and six rebounds. Hannah Sykora scored eight points. Taylor Wiatrak had six. Sydney Farrar and Chris Heimann scored two apiece.

The Tiger men are now 0-1 on the year and the women are 0-3. Both teams will travel to play Cornell on the road this week. The men will get their rematch on Wednesday, and the women play Thursday.