Complete game notes

Washburn to Host Lady Bearcats in battle of 2 of top 3 squads in MIAA race . . . 
The No. 18 Washburn Lady Blues (17-4, 9-3 MIAA) will face off with one of two other teams tied at the top of the MIAA standings in Southwest Baptist who enters Wednesday's game with an identical 17-4, 9-3 MIAA record. Emporia State also is in a tie for first with a 9-3 conference mark. Southwest Baptist handed the Lady Blues a 66-61 loss on Jan. 22 in Bolivar, Mo. in their first meeting of the season. Washburn is coming off an 85-61 win over Pittsburg State on Feb. 9 winning their third straight game in the process. Southwest Baptist topped Truman 87-82 on Saturday and have won their last four games. Washburn will travel to Truman on Feb. 16 before returning home for three straight games beginning with Northwest Missouri on Feb. 20.

Quick Facts
Matchup: Washburn (17-4, 9-3 MIAA) vs Southwest Baptist (17-4, 9-3 MIAA)
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 13
Time: 5:30 p.m. CST
Site: Topeka, Kan. -- Lee Arena (4,179)
Radio: AM 580 WIBW / Topeka with play by play with Mark Elliott and Bruce Steinbrock
Online Audio: Through wusports.com (free)
Online Video: Through themiaa.tv ($5.50)
Live Stats: Through http://livestats.internetconsult.com/washburn/wbball/
Coaches: Washburn head coach Ron McHenry is 205-41 (.833) in his eighth season - McHenry is 15-3 against Southwest Baptist.
Southwest Baptist head coach Jim Middleton is in his 14th year at SBU, where he has compiled a record of 235-152. Middleton is 10-17 against Washburn.
Rankings: Washburn is ranked No. 18 in the WBCA/USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll - No. 3 in the NCAA South Central Regional Rankings.
Series Record: WU leads the all-time series 24-11
Streaks: WU has won the last seven meetings in Topeka
Last Meeting: SBU 66-61, 1/22/08 in Bolivar.
Last WU win: WU 78-53 in the MIAA quarterfinals, 3/3/07 in Kansas City
Last SBU win: same as above
Worth noting: Washburn has won the last seven in Topeka … SBU's last win in the series in Topeka was on Feb. 3, 2001 in a 73-65 victory.

Lady Blues on radio . . .
The Lady Blues game with Southwest Baptist will be broadcast live on AM 580 WIBW with Mark Elliott calling the action and Bruce Steinbrock providing color commentary. The games will also be streamed live online by clicking the live audio button under Lady Blues Basketball on the WU web site at wusports.com.

The coaches . . .
Washburn head coach Ron McHenry has posted a 205-41 (.833) record overall and 107-29 (.787) record in the MIAA with four MIAA regular season championships from 2003-06 and the 2005 NCAA National Championship. McHenry has the highest winning percentage (.833) in MIAA history of coaches who have at least 200 wins.
He was named the Lady Blues head coach prior to the 2000-01 season. He is second among active women's NCAA Division II Coaches in winning percentage. McHenry was named the MIAA's Coach of the Year in 2005 and in 2006 and the Division II Bulletin National Coach of the Year in 2005. (complete bio on page 2 of notes.)
Southwest Baptist head coach Jim Middleton is in his 14th year at SBU, where he has compiled a record of 235-152 (.605) and is the winningest coach in the school's history. He has led the Lady Bearcats to NCAA tournament play six times in his tenure, highlighted by a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2000. Middleton is 10-17 against Washburn.

Last Time Out for the Lady Blues . . .
Feb. 9, 2008 - No. 19 Washburn 71, Pittsburg State 54 • TOPEKA, Kan. -- The No. 19 Washburn Lady Blues won their 15th straight game over the Pittsburg State Gorillas and their seventh straight in Topeka in a 71-54 win in Lee Arena.
The Lady Blues built a lead as many as 12 in the first half after turning a 17-17 tie with 11:31 remaining using a 18-6 run over the next 9:58 stretching the advantage to 35-23. The Lady Blues took a 37-28 lead into the break after shooing 28 of 59 (.475) while holding the Gorillas to 9 of 29 (.310) from the field.
Washburn pushed the lead to 23 in the second half  holding Pittsburg State to 8 of 28 from the field.
The Lady Blues improved to 50 percent shooting in the second half hitting 14 of 28 shots finishing the game 28 of 59 overall.
Washburn was led by Corkey Stiger who scored 15 points with 11 coming in the first half. Amanda Holmes scored 14 and Hope Gregory recorded a career-high 12 on 4 of 4 shooting from the field connecting on both 3-pointers and both free throw attempts. Mainz led the Lady Blues on the glass with seven rebounds.
Brianna Buchanan led the Gorillas (9-12, 3-9 MIAA) with 15 points and Marissa Pope scored 14.
Washburn outscored the Gorillas 32 to 6 in the paint and nipped Pitt State on the boards 37 to 36.

Notes from the Pittsburg State game . . .
Washburn now leads the all-time series 43-24 ... Pitt State is now 6-18 all-time in Lee Arena falling for the seventh straight time in Topeka ... the win was the Lady Blues 297th in Lee Arena all-time ... overall they are 297-56 ... Amanda Holmes recorded her 95 career block ... Jessica Mainz led the Lady Blues in rebounding for the first time this season with seven - all defensive ... the Lady Blues are 201-36 when their opponents shoot under 50 percent under head coach Ron McHenry.
 
Washburn/Southwest Baptist series notes . . .
Wednesday's meeting is the 36th with the Lady Bearcats. Washburn is 24-11 all-time against the Lady Bearcats and Washburn had their 15-game winning streak snapped in the last meeting. Washburn has won the last seven meetings over Southwest Baptist in Topeka and they had won the last six in Bolivar until the five-point loss on Jan. 22. The Lady Blues also have two wins over SBU in the MIAA Tournament quarterfinals in Kansas City on March 3, 2006 and last season on March 3, 2007 in the last meeting in the series. SBU's last win in Topeka was on Feb. 3, 2001 in a 73-65 win in Lee Arena.
 
Last Meeting Between Washburn and Southwest Baptist . . .
(Jan. 22, 2008) BOLIVAR, Mo. – The No. 8 Washburn Lady Blues had its 15-game winning streak over Southwest Baptist snapped in a 66-61 setback in the Meyers Sports Center. Washburn falls to 13-3 and 5-2 in the MIAA – a record which matches the Lady Bearcats.
Washburn trailed by one, 35-34 at the break after Corkey Stiger scored 14 of her game-high 24 points.
In the second half, there were seven score ties and six lead changes after SBU would push its lead to no more than four in the second half at 50-46 with 9:15 left in the game.
Washburn would 13-6 run to take a 59-54 lead with 4:06 left after Brette Ulsaker hit a lay-up following an offensive rebound.
Following an SBU 3-pointer cutting the lead to two, Hope Gregory hit a putback extending Washburn's lead back to four at 61-57.
SBU hit four straight free throws tying the score at 61 with 1:33 left.
The Lady Bearcats' Erika Souza hit a breakaway lay-up to put the lead to two at 63-61 with 1:04 remaining. After an SBU free throw with 17 seconds left, Washburn's Stiger drove the lane and missed her free throws – the second intentionally with five seconds left. SBU rebounded and hit a pair of free throws to seal the game.
Stiger's 24 points finished one shy of a career-high 25 scored against Texas A&M-Commerce earlier this season. Janice Bright scored 13 before coming out the final 7:14 of the game with an injury. Bright also had a team-high seven rebounds.
Erika Souza led SBU with 21 points and Kelly Reinkemeyer had a double double with 16 points and 13 rebounds.
Washburn finished 21 of 60 from the field hitting 35 percent of their shots while SBU finished 24 of 55 for a 44 percent clip. Washburn was held with out a field goal for the final 2:58 of the game.
From the free throw line, Washburn was 15 of 26 compared to SBU's 13 of 15.
Washburn outrebounded SBU 40 to 37 in a game which saw 11 lead changes overall and nine ties.
 
About Southwest Baptist . . .
The Southwest Baptist Lady Bearcats has won their last four meetings after topping Truman 87-82 last time out on Saturday. Erika Souza leads the Lady Bearcats with 19.5 ppg, including 20.1 ppg in MIAA contests. Souza has also recorded a team-best 103 assists on the season. Courtney Creed is second with 12.2 ppg, while Kelly Reinkemeyer averages a team-high 6.2 rebounds a game.

Last time out for the Lady Bearcats . . .
(Feb. 9, 2008) --  BOLIVAR, Mo. – The SBU Lady Bearcats avenged a loss from earlier this season, by defeating Truman State, 87-82.
Erika Souza scored 25 team-leading points for the Lady Bearcats. She grabbed five rebounds and added six to her conference-leading assist total.
Souza hit a trey with 2:11 to give the Lady Bearcats a 81-79 advantage, which would be the lead they would not relinquish.
Four other Lady Bearcats were in double figures. Cortney Shewmaker scored 15. Courtney Creed added 14. Rachel Graves and Kelly Reinkemeyer added 11 each.
Truman's Georgia Mueller scored 25 points for the Bulldogs.
SBU shot 48.6 percent from the field, 42.1 percent from the three-point line, and 84.6 percent from the charity stripe.

Lady Blues player notes . . .
#3 – Brette Ulsaker – G – Hit only 3 point attempt vs PSU playing 17 minutes scoring six points … 13 of 29 from the field in second halves of games this season (.448).
#4 – Amanda Holmes – F – 15 field goal attempts vs PSU was a season high (24 is career high) … 60 career starts No. 25 on career chart.
#11 – Renata Germano – C – Eight points on 4 of 5 shooting vs PSU was a season high … 19 blocks is 27th all-time at Washburn.
#13 – Jessica Mainz – G – Averaging 11 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists per game in last four outtings  … 170 career assists is 25th all-time and 104 steals is 26th all-time at Washburn.
#14 – Alyssa Mullen – F – 2 of 5 from 3-point range in MIAA play this season.
#20 – Hadleigh Meek – G – 9 of 10 from the free throw line this season.
#21 – Corkey Stiger – G – 55 3-ptrs this year 6th best total in school history as well as 161 3-point attempts … her 380 field goal attempts this season is 15th all-time.
#23 – Jacki Tipping – G – Career high 4 points against Truman hitting both field goal attempts.
#24 – Karla Tailele – G – 21 of 52 (.404) from field in MIAA play - 12 of 32 from 3-point range.
#30 – Kalee Silovsky – F – Hit 4 of 7 3-pointers in MIAA play - 6 of 11 overall.
#32 – Janice Bright – G – 25 3-pointers this season is 31st on single-season chart … her 77 3-point field goal attempts is 31st as well.
#33 – Hope Gregory – G – Averaging 6.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg since moving back to starting line up 5 games ago.
#44 – Emily Gibson – F – Averaging 2.0 ppg and 3.0 minutes per game in last two contests.
#50 – Regiane Araujo – C – Last two rebounds have been on offensive side.

Lady Blues in Lee Arena . . .
In their 24th season in Lee Arena, the Lady Blues are 297-56 (.841) overall at home.
The longest winning streak was 44 games from Dec. 1, 1990 to March 20, 1993.
The Lady Blues have won 35 straight regular season non-conference games in Lee Arena. The last defeat by a non-conference team in the regular season was to Missouri-St. Louis in a 59-51 setback on Dec. 30, 2000.
Washburn is 105-10 (.913) in home games under Ron McHenry.

Lady Blues history . . .
Washburn is 688-324 (.680 in 1,012 games) in its 38th season of intercollegiate action.

WU in the national poll . . .
(Feb. 12) The Washburn Lady Blues climbed one from up to No. 19 in the latest USA Today/ESPN Top 25 WBCA Coaches Poll which was released today. Overall, Washburn has received votes in the last 105 consecutive polls and has been in the top 25 in 89 consecutive polls. Washburn was ranked No. 6 in the preseason poll which was released on Oct. 31. The Lady Blues were ranked No. 8 in the final poll of the 2007-08 season after finishing with a 29-4 overall record.

Lady Blues Individual Tip Ins . . .
• Corkey Stiger moved into seventh all-time at Washburn in 3-pointers with 102. She needs seven more to move into sixth place all-time which will pass Jennifer Harris..
• Stiger's 313 3-point attempts is fifth all-time.
• Amanda Holmes is 13th all-time with 231 free throws made and 11th in free throw attempts with 345.
• Holmes is 13th all-time in rebounds at Washburn with 551. She needs four more to move into 12th all-time.
• Holmes' 95 career blocked shots is fourth all-time at Washburn needing seven to move into sole possession of third place.
• Jessica Mainz is 18 of 22 from the free throw line in the last four games. She is 32 of 38 in MIAA play from the free throw (.842).
• Since the start of the MIAA season, Mainz has raised her scoring average from 4.7 ppg to 6.1 ppg.
• Corkey Stiger has averaged 18.0 ppg in the four losses for the Lady Blues. She is the only Washburn player averaging double figures in the four losses. The next highest scorer is Janice Bright at 8.3 ppg.
• In the Feb. 10 NCAA statistics, Washburn's Jessica Mainz is 10th in the nation in assist to turnover ratio (2.24).

Lady Blues Team Tip Ins . . .
• The Lady Blues have held their opponents under 100 points in 272 consecutive games.
• Washburn is averaging 67.5 ppg in MIAA play.
• The Washburn bench is outscoring their opponents this season 452-319.
• In the last five minutes of games, Washburn is outscoring their opponents 212 to 212.
• Washburn is averaging 72.4 ppg in games won and 53.5 ppg in their four losses.
• In the four losses, Washburn is 74 of 225 from the field (.329) and in the 17 wins they are 429 of 1012 (.424).
• From 3-point range in the four losses, Washburn is 17 of 75 (.227) and in the 17 wins they are 125 of 360 (.347).
• From the free throw line, Washburn is 247 of 347 (.712) in the 17 wins and in the four losses they are 49 of 79 (.620).
• Washburn is +8.8 in scoring margin in the first halves of games this season and +4.9 in the second half this season.
• In the Feb. 10 NCAA statistics, Washburn is 11th in turnovers per game (14.6), 13th in field goal percentage defense (.346), 14th in scoring defense (55.1), 19th in rebound margin (+7.5) and 23rd in scoring margin (+13.7).

Up Next . . .
Following the game with the SBU, Washburn will travel to Kirksville, Mo., for a road game at Truman on Feb. 16, Washburn will return home for three straight games - Northwest Missouri on Feb. 20, Emporia state on Feb. 23 and Fort Hays State on Feb. 27 before wrapping up the regular season at Central Missouri at 1:30 p.m. The contest with Fort Hays State will also be senior day for two Lady Blues seniors - Amanda Holmes and Corkey Stiger.