Game Facts Date: Saturday, Nov. 21, 2009 Time: 7 p.m. Site: Topeka, Kan. - Lee Arena (3,904) Radio: 106.9 FM KTPK Online Audio:  wusports.com Live Stats: wusports.com Internet Streaming: wusports.com

Washburn Lady Blues (0-0) Polls 18th in USA Today/ESPN Division II Poll Coaches Head Coach: Ron McHenry Alma Mater: Washburn, 84 WU Record:    241-49, 10th season Career Record: 241-49, 10th season Basketball Page Roster Statistics Schedule Game Notes Media Guide Athletic Web Site

Southwestern Lady Builders (3-2) Coaches Head Coach:     Dave Denly Alma Mater: Wartburg, 93 SWC Record: 206-112, 12th season Career Record: 206-112, 12th season Basketball Page Roster Statistics Schedule Game Notes Media Guide Athletic Web Site

Lady Blues tip-off 2009-10 regular season
The Washburn Lady Blues tip-off the 2009-10 regular season against the Southwestern College Lady Builders on Saturday night at 7 p.m. in Lee Arena. Washburn went 0-3 during the exhibition season with two games against Division I competition and a game with the Ichabod Golf Team. The Lady Blues fell to Iowa 88-60 to start the exhibition season, then dropped a 67-46 decision at Oklahoma State before losing 72-61 to the Ichabod Golfers on Sunday.
Southwestern has already played five games and comes in with a 3-2 record. The Lady Builders have won three straight, including a 61-52 win over Doane College on Tuesday night, after losing their first two games.

Lady Blues on radio . . .
The Lady Blues game will be broadcast live on 106.9 FM KTPK with Mark Elliott and Bruce Steinbrock calling the action. The games will also be streamed live online by clicking the live audio button under the Lady Blues Basketball tab on the Washburn athletics web site at www.wusports.com.

The coaches . . .
Washburn head coach Ron McHenry has posted a 241-49 (.831) record overall and 128-34 (.790) record in the MIAA with five MIAA regular season championships and the 2005 NCAA National Championship. McHenry has also led the Lady Blues to five MIAA Postseason Tournament titles including five of the seven played in Kansas City. McHenry has the highest winning percentage (.831) 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 leads the country 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 8 of notes.)
Southwestern head coach Dave Denly, is in his 12th season leading the Lady Builders. His career mark stands at 209-124. Last season, he led Southwestern to an 18-10 overall record and has the Lady Builders off to a 3-2 start to the 2009-10 campaign. Denly is a 1993 graduate of Wartburg (Iowa) College.

Washburn season preview. . .
After reaching their eighth straight NCAA tournament under head coach Ron McHenry and finishing the 2008-09 season with a 27-5 record and their seventh MIAA Tournament championship, the Lady Blues are primed for another run to the top of the MIAA and the NCAA. Washburn returns seven letterwinners from a season ago to go along with nine talented newcomers.
The Lady Blues will have to replace two starters from last season's backcourt, including All-American Janice Bright and two-time MIAA Defensive Player of the Year Jessica Mainz. The lone returning starter is senior Brette Ulsaker. She averaged 4.9 points and 2.5 rebounds per game playing in all 32 games with 26 starts. Ulsaker scored a career-high 16 points at Pittsburg State.
Also returning is junior Hope Gregory, who played in all 32 games and collected eight starts a year ago. Gregory averaged 5.0 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. She scored a career-high 15 points on two separate occasions.
Sophomore Stevi Schultz saw action in 21 games a season ago and scored 1.7 points per outing, she hit seven of her 24 three-point attempts as a freshman.
Sophomore Lauren Henry returns after seeing time in six games as a true freshman.  Henry is one of the leading scorers on the Lady Blues soccer team and will join the squad at the conclusion of the soccer season.
Junior Jacki Tipping returns after sitting out all of last season after having ankle surgery after the 2007-08 season. Tipping played in 14 games  two seasons ago.
Four newcomers will provide the  Lady Blues with some good depth for the upcoming season. A pair of senior transfers in Amanda Fessenen and Rose Hammond provide more valuable experience to the backcourt.
Fessenden comes to Washburn from Florida Gulf Coast where she averaged 2.5 points  per game last season.
Hammond brings valuable Big XII experience after playing her first three seasons at Oklahoma. She played in 60 career games for the Sooners and led OU in assist-to-turnover ratio as a sophomore.
Laura Kinderknecht averaged 19 points and seven assists per game at St. Marys High School. She was a three-time all-league selection.
Chasity Workman , a 5-10 transfer from South Plains Community College, was an all-conference and all-defensive team honoree. She averaged 7.7 points and 9.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore.
The Lady Blues frontcourt will have to replace two starters who combined for 17.0 points and 9.1 rebounds per game in Stanecia Graham and Kalee Silovsky. Returners looking to fill the void include senior Dayna Rodriguez, junior Alyssa Mullin and sophomore Cassie Lombardino.
Rodriguez started 16 games a season ago and averaged 7.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per contest. She scored a season-high 15 points three times.
Mullen saw action in 30 games and averaged 1.3 points and 1.8 rebounds in eight minutes per outing.
Lombardino played in 14 games and made five of her 10 field goal attempts. She brings good size at 6-3.
Washburn added height and depth to the front line with the addition of transfers Raychel Boling, Ashley Jappa and Sierra Moeller and newcomers Dana Elliott and Laura McMullin.
Boling sat out last season after transferring from Fort Hays State where she averaged 3.0 points and 1.5 rebounds per game in 2007-08.
Jappa, a 6-2 junior transfer from Oklahoma State played in nine games for the Cowgirls last season. She averaged 14.4 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game as a freshman at Fort Scott Community College.
Moeller, a 6-1 junior transfer from Boise State where she played in 32 games as a freshman and averaged 3.8 points and 3.7 rebounds in 13.9 minutes per game. Moeller will redshirt this season.
Elliott is a 5-11  prep standout from Rock Creek High School where she was named the Flint Hills Player of the Year and a four-time all-league selection after scoring over 1,000 points in her career.
McMullin, a 6-1 freshman from Sedalia, Mo. was an all-state selection after averaging 21 points and 11 rebounds per game as a senior at Sacred Heart High School. She scored over 1,600 career points and pulled down over 1,100 career rebounds.
The Lady Blues will open the season with back-to-back exhibition games. They tip-off against the University of Iowa on November 8 in Iowa City and then face Oklahoma State at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater on November 10. Washburn will tip-off the regular season on November 21 in Lee Arena against Southwestern College. On November 24, Washburn will travel to Springfield, Mo. to take on Drury and then return home to host the Lady Blues Holiday Classic on November 27 and 28 with games against Missouri-St. Louis and Rockhurst.
The Lady Blues tip-off the MIAA slate on December 2 with a trip to Omaha, Neb. to take on Nebraska-Omaha. Washburn will take on Northwest Missouri on December 5 in Maryville before hosting Truman on December 12.
The Lady Blues will take a two-game break from the MIAA as they take part in the Western Washington Great Western Shootout in Las Vegas, Nev. as they take on Western Washington on December 16 and Central Washington on December 17.
After the break, Washburn will resume conference play on December 28 at home against Missouri Western. Three straight road games ensue against Fort Hays State, Central Missouri and Southwest Baptist. Missouri Southern comes to Lee Arena on January 9 and then the Lady Blues travel to Pittsburg State on January 13 before hosting Emporia State on January 16 which begins the final stretch for the Lady Blues of seven of their final 11 games at home.
Washburn will take part in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association Pink Zone game against Southwest Baptist on February 13. The Lady Blues will wear pink uniforms to raise breast cancer awareness.
The Lady Blues wrap up the regular season on the road with the annual Turnpike Tussle against Emporia State in Emporia on February 24.
Washburn will head to Kansas City, Mo. and Municipal Auditorium March 4-7 for the MIAA Postseason Tournament.
The NCAA-II South Central Regional is scheduled for March 12, 13 and 15 with the winner advancing to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight March 24, 25 and 27 in St. Joseph, Mo.

 Last Time Out for the lady Blues . . .
November 15, 2009 - Ichabod Golf 72 Team, Washburn 61 - Exhibition #3
TOPEKA, Kan. -- The Washburn Lady Blues basketball team made a late rally, but couldn't quite come all the way back in a 72-61 exhibition loss to the Ichabod Golf Team on Sunday afternoon at Lee Arena. The Lady Blues open the regular season next Saturday against Southwestern (Kan.) College at 7 p.m. in Lee Arena.
The Ichabod Golf Team scored the first four points of the game and never trailed en route to the win. They opened up a 14-point lead at 21-7 with 12:42 to play in the first half. The lead was 11 when both teams went into a three and a half minute slump. The golfers ended that with a quick 4-0 run with just over six to play to take a 15-point advantage. The lead was 32-17 with 4:16 remaining in the opening stanza when the Lady Blues went on a 12-6 run to get within nine at 38-29 at the break.
WU Golf extended the lead back to 15 in the early going of half number two. The lead ballooned to 19 with just over 10 to play. An 11-0 run cut the lead to eight at 58-50. After a three-pointer by the golfers, the Lady Blues used an 8-0 run to get within three at 61-58 with 2:52 remaining in regulation. Washburn would get no closer as the golfers closed the game on an 11-3 run to win 72-61.
Freshman Laura Kinderknecht led the Lady Blues with 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting, while Hope Gregory chipped in 12 and Amanda Fessenden added 10.
Matt Lazzo led the WU golfers with 17 points, while Brian Walker had 13 points and 17 rebounds and Matt Ewald added 13 points and 13 boards of his own.

Washburn/Southwestern series notes . . .
The Lady Blues lead the overall series 7-3 and have won six straight games against the Lady Builders. Washburn won last year's game 87-42 in Lee Arena.
 
About Southwestern . . .
Head coach Dave Denly is in the midst of his 12th season at the helm of the Lady Builder program. He has Southwestern out to a 3-2 start in 2009-10 after an 18-10 campaign a season ago. The Lady Builders return 11 letterwinners from last season, including four of five starters.
Jasmine Manuel leads the Lady Builders averaging 10.4 points per game, while Jasmine Jackson and Jordan Jarnagin average 8.2 and 7.6 per contest, respectively. They are averaging 61.2 points per game as a team and giving up just 57.4 per outing.
Tylar Hartfield leads the team in rebounding at 7.2 per game, while Jackson also pulls down six boards per contest.

Lady Blues in season openers . . .
The Lady Blues are 9-0 in season openers under 10th year head coach Ron McHenry and 31-9 in the program's history. The last season-opening loss was a 73-60 setback against Nebraska-Kearney in 1998.

Lady Blues in home openers . . .
Washburn is 9-0 in home openers during the Ron McHenry era. The last loss in a home-opener was to Nebraska-Kearney in 1998 (73-60).

A win would . . .
A win would make the Lady Blues 1-0 on the season ... make Washburn 10-0 in season and home openers under Ron McHenry ... give McHenry a 242-49 overall record ... give Washburn a 723-332 record in its 41st season of basketball.

A loss would . . .
A loss would be the first season-opening and home-opening loss during the Ron McHenry era ... make the Lady Blues 0-1 for the first time since 1998 ... give McHenry a 241-50 career record ... give Washburn a 722-333 record in 41 years of playing collegiate basketball.

Lady Blues in Lee Arena . . .
In their 26th season in Lee Arena, the Lady Blues are 315-57 (.847) overall at home. Washburn won their 300th game against Emporia State on Feb. 23, 2008.
The longest winning streak was 44 games from Dec. 1, 1990 to March 20, 1993.
The Lady Blues have won 42 straight regular season non-conference games in Lee Arena. The last loss to a non-conference team in the regular season was to Missouri-St. Louis in a 59-51 setback on Dec. 30, 2000.
Washburn is 124-12 (.912) in home games under Ron McHenry. Five of the 12 losses came in his first year on the Lady Blues bench. In the last eight seasons, Washburn is 116-7 (.943).

Lady Blues history . . .
Washburn is 722-332 (.685 in 1,054 games) in its 41st season of intercollegiate action. The Lady Blues have played in 13 NCAA Tournaments, made five Elite Eight appearances and won the 2005 National Championship.

Washburn in the national poll . . .
The 2009-10 preseason top 25 poll has Washurn at No. 18, while the Lady Blues were receiving votes in the NCAA Division II Bulletin Preseason Poll.
The Lady Blues were No. 13 in the final USA Today/ESPN Top 25 WBCA Coaches Poll of the 2009 season. Overall, Washburn has received votes in the last 120 consecutive polls and has been in the top 25 in 104 consecutive polls, the longest current streak in NCAA-II.

Blues Clues . . .
#1 • Chasity Workman • G • 5-10 • Jr. • A transfer from South Plains CC who earned all-defensive team honors last season
#3 • Brette Ulsaker • G • 5-9 • Sr. • Played in 32 games a season ago
#5 • Laura Kinderknecht • G • 5-7 • fr. • An all-state pick after scoring 19 ppg last season
#10 • Lauren Henry • G • 5-4 • So. • Will join hoops team after soccer season concludes.
#14 • Alyssa Mullen • F • 5-11 • Jr. • Played in 30 games last season
#20 • Dana Elliott • F • 5-11 • Fr. • Flint Hills Player of the Year as a senior, scored over 1,000 career points at Rock Creek High School
#21 • Cassie Lombardino • C • 6-3 • So. • Played in 14 games as a freshman
#22 • Ashley Jappa • F • 6-2 • Jr. • Played in nine games at Oklahoma State last year
#23 • Jacki Tipping • G • 5-10 • Jr. • Sat out last season after ankle surgery
#25 • Stevi Schultz • G • 5-9 • So. • Scored 35 points as a freshman
#31 • Rose Hammond • G • 5-10 • Sr. • Played in 60 career games at Oklahoma
#32 • Amanda Fessenden • G • 5-9 • Sr. • Averaged 2.5 ppg last season at Florida Gulf Coast
#33 • Hope Gregory • G • 5-10 • Jr. • Averaged 5.0 ppg in 32 games last season
#34 • Sierra Moeller • F • 6-1 • Jr. • Will redshirt 2009-10 season after transferring from Boise State
#40 • Dayna Rodriguez • F • 6-2 • Sr. • Averaged 7.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per game last season
#42 • Raychel Boling • F • 6-0 • Jr. • Sat out last season after transferring from Fort Hays State
#44 • Laura McMullin • F • 6-1 • Fr. • An all-state selection after averaging 21 points and 11 rebounds per game as a senior

Tip-Ins . . .
• The Lady Blues are 22-3 in home openers in Lee Arena. Their last loss in the first game in Lee Arena was on Nov. 16, 1998, a 73-60 setback to Nebraska-Kearney.
• Under head coach Ron McHenry, the Lady Blues are 9-0 in season openers as well as home openers.
• The Lady Blues are 9-0 all-time on Nov. 21, including 1-0 under Ron McHenry after an 87-42 win over Southwestern College last season.

Up Next . . .
The Lady Blues travel to Springfield, Mo. on Tuesday to take on Drury before returning home to host the Lady Blues Holiday Classic on Nov. 27 and 28.