Media Information
Date: Monday, Nov. 15, 2010
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Topeka, Kan.
Arena: Lee Arena (3,904)
Television: None
Radio: 106.9 KTPK Topeka with Mark Elliott (pxp) and Bruce Steinbrock (color)
Live Stats: www.wusports.com
Audio Web Stream: Through wusports.com
Video Web Stream: None
Complete Game Notes

Lady Blues tip-off season against Southwestern College
The Washburn Lady Blues tip-off the 2010-11 regular season with a 7 p.m. game against Southwestern (Kan.) College on Monday night.
Washburn went 0-2 during the exhibition portion of the schedule with losses at Kansas and Kansas State. The Lady Blues are coming off a 27-4 season in which they captured the MIAA regular season and tournament titles and advanced to their ninth straight NCAA tournament.
The Lady Blues return seven letterwinners from last season's squad to go along with eight newcomers. Washburn will have to replace all five starters from a season ago as they look to defend their MIAA crown and get back to the NCAA-II South Central regional for the 10th consecutive season.

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

The Coaches . . .
Washburn head coach Ron McHenry has posted a 268-53 (.835) record overall and 145-37 (.797) record in the MIAA with six MIAA regular season championships and the 2005 NCAA National Championship. McHenry has also led the Lady Blues to six MIAA Postseason Tournament titles including six of the eight played in Kansas City. McHenry has the highest winning percentage (.835) 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 2004, 2005 and 2010 and the Division II Bulletin National Coach of the Year in 2005.
Southwestern head coach Dave Denly, is in his 13th season at the helm of the Lady Builders program. His career record stands at 232-131 after leading Southwestern to a 22-9 record last season. He has the Lady Builders off to a 4-0 start to this season. Southwestern is 0-5 against Washburn under Denly. He is a 1993 graduate of Wartburg (Iowa) College.

Washburn Season Preview. . .
The Lady Blues won their sixth MIAA regular season championship and sixth MIAA tournament title in the past eight years in 2009-10. They finished the season 27-4 overall after advancing to their ninth straight NCAA tournament. If the Lady Blues want to add to their championship total and get back to their 10th straight NCAA tournament they'll need the seven returning letterwinners to blend with eight newcomers.
The Lady Blues will replacing all five starters from last season's conference championship team. In the backcourt, they'll be replacing MIAA Defensive Player of the Year Brette Ulsaker along with one-year starters Amanda Fessenden and Rose Hammond.
Stevi Schultz and Laura Kinderknecht return with the most experience in the backcourt. Schultz averaged 7.3 points per game playing in all 31 games with three starts. She scored in double-figures nine times, including a career-high 18 points against Rockhurst. Kinderknecht averaged 3.4 points and 1.1 assists per game, while playing in all 31 games averaging 11 minutes per contest.
Six newcomers, including a pair of junior college transfers will provide Washburn with some much needed depth in the backcourt.
Megan Lassley comes to Washburn from Seward County Community College and Amy Green from Highland Community College. Green was the Heart of America Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year at Mid-America Nazarene before transferring to Highland CC last season.
Lindy Arndt was a first team all-conference, all-area and second team all-state selection as well as a KBCA All-Star for Emporia High School where she averaged 13 points, five rebounds and four assists per game as a senior.
Dana Channel was a three-time Mid-East League Most Valuable Player for Rossville High School and earned second team all-state honors her senior season.
Sami McHenry will join the team this season and play for her father. McHenry was an honorable mention all-state pick at Shawnee Heights High School and will join the team when the Lady Blues volleyball season concludes.
Hailee Michel led the Solon Spartans in scoring all four years and was an Iowa Coaches' Association Gatorade All-Star her senior season.
Ebonie Williams, a 5-8 transfer from Seton Hall, was an all-Big East selection after leading the Pirates in scoring all three seasons. She was a member of the Big East all-freshman team and was named team MVP. Williams will redshirt this season.
The Lady Blues will have to replace two starters who combined for 25.9 points and 15.4 rebounds per game in Dayna Rodriguez and Hope Gregory. Rodriguez was a WBCA honorable mention All-American and Gregory was named second team all-MIAA in addition to earning MIAA tournament MVP honors. Returners looking to fill the void include seniors Raychel Boling and Alyssa Mullen, junior Cassie Lombardino and sophomores Dana Elliott and Laura McMullin.
Boling saw action in 15 games a season ago, while Mullen played in all 31 games averaging 4.3 rebounds per contest.
Lombardino packs the most returning offensive punch up front after averaging 3.6 points in 30 games. She scored a career-high 15 points in the MIAA tournament win over Southwest Baptist.
McMullin appeared in 20 games averaging 1.2 points per, while Elliott saw action 15 games.
Washburn added height up front with the addition of transfers Naudia Campbell and Sierra Moeller.
Moeller, a 6-1 junior, sat out last season after transferring from Boise State where she averaged 3.8 points and 3.7 rebounds in 32 games played as a freshman two seasons ago.
Campbell, a 6-2 transfer, was an all-Jayhawk conference pick and a region VI all-tournament team selection after averaging 7.5 points and 6.9 rebounds per game for Hutchinson Community College last season.
The Lady Blues will open the 2010-11 season with back-to-back exhibition games against in-state division I programs. Washburn will tip-off against Kansas on November 7 at Allen Fieldhouse and then face Kansas State in Manhattan the very next day. The regular season gets underway on November 15 in Lee Arena against Southwestern College. On November 23, Washburn welcomes Drury to town before hitting the road to Phoenix, Ariz and the Grand Canyon Thanksgiving Classic on November 26 and 27. While in the Valley of the Sun, the Lady Blues will battle California State-Dominguez Hills and Lake Superior State (Mich.).
The Lady Blues begin defense of their MIAA crown with three straight homes games beginning on December 1 when Nebraska-Omaha comes calling. Northwest Missouri comes to town on December 4 and Fort Hays State on December 8. Washburn will travel to Truman State on December 11 and Missouri Western on December 19 before the winter break.
After the break, MIAA resumes with a home game against Central Missouri on New Year's Eve. The Lady Blues will alternate home and away games for the next five games before beginning the second half of the conference slate. An away game at Nebraska-Omaha on January 22 begins the final stretch for the Lady Blues as they play seven of their final 11 games on the road.
Washburn will take part in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association Pink Zone game against Missouri Southern on February 17. The Lady Blues will wear pink uniforms to support breast cancer awareness.
The Lady Blues wrap up the regular season in Jefferson City, Mo. against MIAA newcomer Lincoln on February 26.
The MIAA tournament returns to Kansas City, Mo. and Municipal Auditorium March 4-6 with the top eight teams in the league qualifying for the event.
The NCAA-II South Central Regional is scheduled for March 11, 12 and 14 with the regional champion advancing to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight in St. Joseph, Mo. on March 22, 23 and 25.

Last time out for the Lady Blues . . .
November 8, 2010 - MANHATTAN, Kan. -- The Washburn Lady Blues dropped their second straight exhibition game, 91-47 at Kansas State on Monday night. Washburn will open the regular season next Monday against Southwestern (Kan.) at 7 p.m. in Lee Arena.
Kansas State opened the game on a 5-0 run and never trailed. Washburn got on the board on a jumper from Sierra Moeller at the 16:11 mark. the Lady Blues stayed close through the middle parts of the opening period before the Wildcats extended the lead to 12 with just over six minutes to play in the half. WU cut the lead to single digits with 3:24 to play on a pair of free throws from Dana Channel, but KSU closed the half on a 8-2 run to lead 39-25 at the break.
Stevi Schultz drained a three-pointer out of the break to cut the lead to 11, but a 20-1 run by the Wildcats put the game out of reach.The lead grew to as many as 44 in the second half as KSU rolled to the 44-point win.
Schultz led the Lady Blues with 14 points and Naudia Campbell had eight. Alyssa Mullen chipped in six points and seven boards.
Jalan Childs led three Wildcats in double figures with 17 points. Brittany Chambers added 15 points and seven rebounds, while Brianna Kulas had 12.
Washburn struggled from the floor going 17-of-56 for 30 percent and hit just 4-of-21 three-point attempts. K-State shot 52 percent from the field, 34-of-65, and made 8-of-21 treys.
Washburn committed 16 turnovers to just eight assists, while the Wildcats had 22 assists and eight turnovers

Last time out for Southwestern . . .
November 13, 2010 - Winfield, Kan. - Southwestern College jumped out to an early 10-0 lead and never looked back as the Lady Builders lead wire to wire for a 66-60 victory over the No. 21 ranked Hasting College Broncos.  A big effort from SC not only helped the Lady Builders knock off a pernially imposing team in Hastings, but, also improved the SC record to 4-0 on the season.
Winfield, Kan. - Southwestern College jumped out to an early 10-0 lead and never looked back as the Lady Builders lead wire to wire for a 66-60 victory over the No. 21 ranked Hasting College Broncos.  A big effort from SC not only helped the Lady Builders knock off a perennially imposing team in Hastings, but, also improved the SC record to 4-0 on the season.
Southwestern was lead by Brett Bates who finished with 12 points on 4-8 shooting on the night.  Tyler Hartfield also added nine points and eight rebounds.  The Lady Builders were able to use their depth and energy to seize control of the game early and never look back; all 14 members of Southwestern played and 11 players scored in the winning effort.
The Moundbuilders will travel to Topeka on Monday to play an exhibition game versus the NCAA II Washburn University at 7 p.m.

Washburn/Southwestern series notes . . .
The Lady Blues lead the overall series with Southwestern 8-3 and have won seven straight games in the series. Washburn won last season's meeting 102-43 in Topeka and the Blues are 5-0 against the Lady Builders under Ron McHenry.

About Southwestern . . .
The Lady Builders are 4-0 on the season after a 66-60 win over No. 21-ranked NAIA Hastings College. Brett Bates is leading the Lady Builders offensively with 12.3 points per game and shoots 50 percent from the field. Jasmine Manuel is the only other player averaging in double figures at 10 points per, but they do have six players averaging at least 5.8 points per contest.
Tylar Hartfield leads the team with 7.5 rebounds per outing, while Jasmine Jackson pulls down 5.3 boards per game.

For Starters . . .
Washburn is 32-9 overall in season-opening games and 10-0 in season-openers under Ron McHenry. The last loss in a season-opener for the Lady Blues was a 73-60 setback against Nebraska-Kearney to start the 1998-99 season.

A Win Would . . .
A win would make the Lady Blues 1-0 on the season and 11-0 in season-openers under Ron McHenry ... give Washburn 12 straight wins in season-openers ... give the Lady Blues eight straight wins over Southwestern ... give the Lady Blues a 9-3 lead in the series with SWC ... give Washburn a 750-336 record in 42 years of basketball.

A Loss Would . . .
A loss would be the first loss in a season-opener under Ron McHenry, snapping a 10-game winning streak ... snap a seven-game winning streak against Southwestern ... cut Washburn's series lead to 8-4 with the Lady Builders ... give Washburn a 749-337 record in 42 years of basketball

Lady Blues in Lee Arena . . .
In their 27th season in Lee Arena, the Lady Blues are 326-59 (.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 45 straight regular season non-conference games in Lee Arena. The last home 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 135-14 (.906) in home games under Ron McHenry. Five of the 14 losses came in his first year on the Lady Blues bench. In the last nine seasons, Washburn is 127-9 (.934).

Lady Blues on the road . . .
The Lady Blues are 77-30 (.720) on the road under Ron McHenry. Washburn's best road record under McHenry was 8-0 during the 2005-06 season. The Lady Blues were 10-1 on the road last season, including 9-1 during MIAA play.

Lady Blues History . . .
Washburn is 749-336 (.690 in 1,085 games) in its 42nd season of intercollegiate action. The Lady Blues have won seven MIAA regular season titles and eight MIAA postseason tournament championships since becoming eligible for conference championships in 1990-91.

Washburn in the National Poll . . .
The 2010-11 USA Today/ESPN Division II Coaches' preseason top 25 poll has Washburn at No. 9, while the Lady Blues were 19th in the NCAA Division II Bulletin Preseason Poll.
The Lady Blues were No. 10 in the final USA Today/ESPN Top 25 WBCA Coaches Poll of the 2009-10 season. Overall, Washburn has received votes in the last 137 consecutive polls and has been in the top 25 in 121 consecutive polls, the longest active streak in NCAA-II.

Blue Clues . . .
#1 • Naudia Campbell • C • 6-2 • Jr. • A transfer from Hutchinson Community College where she was an all-conference selection
#3 • Hailee Michel • G • 5-11 • Fr. • Leading scorer for Solon High School in all four years
#4 • Lindy Arndt • G •5-11 • Fr. • A KBCA All-Star at Emporia HS
#5 • Laura Kinderknecht • G • 5-7 • So. • Averaged 3.4 ppg in 31 games last season
#10 • Dana Channel • G •5-10 • Fr. • 3-time Mid-East League MVP at Rossville High School
#14 • Alyssa Mullen • F • 5-11 • Sr. • Led WU with nine points against KU
#15 • Sami McHenry • G • 5-8 • Fr. • Will join team after conclusion of Washburn volleyball season
#20 • Dana Elliott • F • 5-11 • So. • Saw action in 15 games last season
#21 • Cassie Lombardino • C • 6-3 • Jr. • Played in 30 games making one start in 2009-10 season
#22 • Megan Lassley • G • 5-4 • Jr. • Transfer from Seward County CC
#24 • Ebonie Williams • G • 5-8 • Sr. • Will sit out the 2010-11 season after transferring from Seton Hall
#25 • Stevi Schultz • G • 5-9 • Jr. • Averaged 7.3 ppg in 31 games last year
#32 • Sierra Moeller • F • 6-1 • Jr. • Grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds in the exhibition game at Kansas
#33 • Amy Green • G • 5-10 • Jr. • Transfer from Highland Community College was the Heart of America Conference Freshman of the Year at Mid America Nazarene two years ago
#42 • Raychel Boling • F • 6-0 • Sr. • Saw action in 15 games last season scoring 22 points
#44 • Laura McMullin • F • 6-1 • So. • Averaged 1.2 ppg and 1.2 rpg in 20 games played last season

Tip-Ins . . .
• The Lady Blues are 3-0  in games played on November 15, including 1-0 under Ron McHenry. Washburn defeated Evangel 74-50 on November 15, 2003, also a season-opener.
• Washburn's last loss in a home non-conference game was 59-51 setback against Missouri-St. Louis on Dec. 30, 2000.

Up Next . . .
The Lady Blues will host 16th-ranked Drury on Tuesday, November 23 in the final home non-conference game of the season. Washburn will travel to Phoenix, Arizona for a pair of games in the Grand Canyon Thanksgiving Classic on November 26 and 27.
MIAA play begins in December with three straight home games. WU will host Nebraska-Omaha on December 1, Northwest Missouri State on December 4 and Fort Hays State on December 8.