This Week in Bulldog Athletics Jan. 6-12
 
SWIMMING
VS. WILLIAM JEWELL (MO.) // 1 P.M. // JAN. 11 // PERSHING NATATORIUM // KIRKSVILLE, MO.
 
Truman State Swimming returns to action this weekend when it plays host to William Jewell (Mo.) in the Pershing Natatorium. In a rematch of an Oct. 5 meet in Liberty, Mo., the Bulldogs will look to better a narrow loss of 106-99 on the women's side while the men will attempt to improve upon a 140-65 final.
 
The meet against the Cardinals marks the first event for Purple and White swimmers since the Phoenix Fall Classic at the University of Chicago on Nov. 22. Senior Emily Traub picked up silver medals in the 50, 100, and 200 as the women placed fourth with 527.5 points while A.J. Kohler picked up his second B-cut of the season, and was in the A Finals in the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle events, to help the men score 411 points for fourth place.
 
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
AT ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD* // 5:30 P.M. // JAN. 9 // THE RECREATION AND ATHLETIC CENTER // SPRINGFIELD, ILL.
AT MCKENDREE (ILL.)* // 1 P.M. // JAN. 11 // MELVIN PRICE CONVOCATION CENTER // LEBANON, ILL.
 
After a narrow 74-72 loss to Missouri S&T on Jan. 3, the Bulldog Women's Basketball team (5-9, 2-2 GLVC) takes to the road for a pair of Great Lakes Valley Conference games against Illinois Springfield (2-11, 1-4 GLVC) and McKendree (8-3, 4-1 GLVC) as the conference season gets into full swing.
 
Graduate student guard Jordan Cunningham continues to lead the Bulldogs across several per game statistical categories including assists (3.1), steals (1.6), blocks (0.9), and minutes (32.7), while her 17.4 points per game are tops on the squad and third in the league. Sophomore Guard Molly Joyce joins Cunningham in the top ten in scoring with 15.4 per game, which is good for eighth.
 
The Prairie Stars ended an 11-game losing streak to open the 2024-25 season against Saint Ambrose (Iowa), 72-44 on Jan. 2, then picked up their first league win against Indianapolis, 67-58, on Jan. 5. Truman State holds a 15-3 all-time advantage over Illinois Springfield but split the series one year ago including a 75-56 loss in Springfield and 98-83 win in Kirksville on Jan. 13 and Feb. 22, respectively. Sophomore guard Kayla Rice paces the Prairie Stars with 16.5 points per game ranked sixth in GLVC scoring.
 
McKendree occupies second place in the GLVC behind a pair of 5-0 teams in Lewis (Ill.) and Drury (Mo.) with its lone league loss coming at the hands of the Flyers, 84-80, Jan. 5 in Romeoville, Ill. While the 'Dogs hold a commanding 20-3 series record against the Bearcats, McKendree swept a pair last season, 76-71 Nov. 25, 2023 and 74-61 Feb. 1, for its first victories over Truman State since 1988. The Bearcats are led by sophomore forward Baylie Parks with 17.9 points per game, second in league scoring, while senior guard Clare Breden's 14.6 places her tenth in the GLVC.
 
Truman State returns home following McKendree against Upper Iowa at 5:15 p.m. Jan. 16 and Lewis (Ill.) at 1 p.m. Jan. 18.
 
MEN'S BASKETBALL
AT ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD* // 7:30 P.M. // JAN. 9 // THE RECREATION AND ATHLETIC CENTER // SPRINGFIELD, ILL.
AT MCKENDREE (ILL.)* // 3 P.M. // JAN. 11 // MELVIN PRICE CONVOCATION CENTER // LEBANON, ILL.
 
Truman State Men's Basketball, 7-5 overall and 1-3 GLVC, looks to bounce back after a 72-69 defeat at the hands of Missouri S&T against Illinois Springfield (6-7 overall, 1-4 GLVC) and McKendree (6-6 overall, 3-2 GLVC).
 
The Bulldogs continue to be paced in scoring by from junior guard Xavier Hall (12.9 PPG) and sophomore guard Kobi Williams (12.7), 22nd and 24th in conference scoring, respectively. Hall's 5.8 assists per game remains and the 122 triples by the Purple and White are most in the league.
 
Illinois Springfield lost at Indianapolis, 80-79, Jan. 5 to fall to 1-4 in conference action with the lone victory coming Dec. 5 at Maryville (Mo.), 78-71. Truman State holds an 11-3 edge over the Prairie Stars having split last season's contests with an 81-77 win in Springfield and 74-65 loss in Kirksville. Senior guard Max Kunnert's 15.5 points per game leads the Prairie Stars and is good for tenth among all conference scorers.
 
McKendree enters this week's play with consecutive losses to Indianapolis, 75-71 on Jan. 3, and Lewis, 85-81 on Jan. 5. The Bearcats are led by senior guard Kevin Stein's 14.6 points per game and senior guard Joey Niesman's 14.3 points per game, which are good for 15th and 16th in the conference, respectively. 
 
The Bulldogs play host to Upper Iowa at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 16 and Lewis at 3 p.m. Jan. 18.