Media Information
Date: Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2010
Time: 5:30 p.m.
Location: Topeka, Kan.
Arena: Lee Arena (3,904)
Television: None
Radio: AM 580 WIBW with Mark Elliott (pxp) and Bruce Steinbrock (color)
Live Stats: www.wusports.com
Audio Web Stream: Through wusports.com
Video Web Stream: Through wusports.com
Complete Game Notes

Lady Blues to host Fort Hays State
The fourth-ranked Lady Blues wrap-up their three-game MIAA opening home stand hosting Fort Hays State on Wednesday evening at 5:30 p.m. in Lee Arena.
The Lady Blues are led by four players averaging double figures, led by junior center Cassie Lombardino at 14.5 points per game. Laura Kinderknecht is scoring 13.3 per outing, Stevi Schultz is pouring in 11.2 per game and Alyssa Mullen chips in 10.8 per contest. Washburn's starters are accounting for 79.9 percent of the teams scoring.
Washburn opened conference play with a pair of wins last week over Nebraska-Omaha and Northwest Missouri State. Washburn built big leads in both games then had to withstand rallies from both squads and rally at the end for the wins. Washburn has now won 12 straight MIAA regular season games dating back to last season.

Lady Blues on radio . . .
The Lady Blues game with Fort Hays State will be broadcast on AM 580 WIBW. Mark Elliott will be calling play-by-play action with 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 Washburn Athletics web site at www.wusports.com.
The game will also be webcast through America One Networks. You can access the webcast by clicking on the B2/MIAA advertisement on the lower right side of the Washburn athletics web site main page at www.wuports.com

The Coaches . . .
Washburn head coach Ron McHenry has posted a 274-53 (.838) overall record and a 147-37 (.799) 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 (.838) 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. (complete bio on page 6 of notes.)
Fort Hays State head coach Tony Hobson, is in his third season leading the Tigers. He has FHSU off to a 5-1 start this season, including 2-0 in MIAA play bringing his record at Fort Hays State to 32-30. His career record in his 10th season as a head coach stands at 243-70. Last season, the Hastings College graduate led the Tigers to a 15-13 overall record and a 7th place finish in the MIAA at 8-12.

Last time out for the Lady Blues . . .
December 4, 2010 - TOPEKA, Kan. -- The fourth-ranked Lady Blues built a big second half lead then held on for an 82-79 win over Northwest Missouri State on Saturday night at Lee Arena. The Lady Blues are back in action on Wednesday night at home against Fort Hays State.
Back-to-back three pointers by Laura Kinderknecht and Alyssa Mullen got Washburn (6-0, 2-0 MIAA) off to a good start. The Lady Blues built the lead to eight before a 14-2 run by the Bearcats (4-2, 0-2 MIAA) gave NWMSU a 21-17 lead with 10:34 to play in the half.
Northwest Missouri led 32-28 with 4:32 to play in the period, but the Lady Blues used a 10-0 run to grab the lead and WU went into the half with a 41-39 lead.
An 8-2 run out of the break gave Washburn an eight-point lead with 18:50 to play in the game. After a Bearcat three-pointer cut the lead to five the Lady Blues went on a 17-3 run to open a 66-47 lead with 12:46 to play in the game.
Northwest Missouri responded with a 24-5 run to tie the game at 71 with 4:52 to play in the game. Washburn led by four 76-72 with 2:56 remaining before a 7-2 by the Bearcats put them back in front 79-78 with 54 ticks on the clock. Mullen scored on a lay-in to put WU back in front for good at :30 and Megan Lassley knocked down a pair of free throws with three seconds left to give Washburn the final margin.
Stevi Schultz led Washburn and tied her career high with 18 points, while Mullen set a new career-high for the third straight game with 17 points, she also had a team-high eight rebounds as did Schultz.
Cassie Lombardino had 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Kinderknecht chipped in 13 and tied her career-high with five assists.
Washburn shot 43 percent from the floor, 29-of-67 and were 9-of-29 from behind the three point line. NWMSU shot 48 percent from the field, 29-of-61 and were 11-of-23 from three-point range.
The Lady Blues out-rebounded the Bearcats 40-34 and dished out 21 assists to 13 for NWMSU.

Notes from the win over NWMSU . . .
• Washburn improved to 2-0 in MIAA play for the fourth straight season
• Washburn won its 12 straight MIAA regular season game dating back to last season
• Alyssa Mullen set a new career scoring high for the third straight game with 17 points
• The Lady Blues improved to 44-9 all-time against the Bearcats

Washburn/Fort Hays STate series notes . . .
Washburn leads the series with Fort Hays State 40-25 and the Lady Blues are 10-0 against the Tigers under Ron McHenry. WU has won 15 straight in the series. The last loss to FHSU was a 67-62 setback  in 1994.

About Fort Hays State . . .
The Tigers are coming off a 76-70 win over Nebraska-Omaha on Friday night in Hays. FHSU is off to a 5-1 start, including 2-0 in MIAA play after beating Lincoln in the conference-opener.
The Tigers are led in scoring by Kimber Weiser at 11.7 points per game and Rhys Pihl at 10.8 per contest. Both players come off the bench, but average 18.3 and 17.7 minutes per outing, respectively.
Kara Champlin chips in 9.0 points per game and leads the team with 5.8 rebounds per contest.
Fort Hays State is shooting 38 percent from the floor, while holding opponents to 37.5 percent from the field. FHSU is 48-of-168 for 28.6 percent from behind the arc and they hit 71.5 percent of their tries from the free throw line. The Tigers out-rebound their opponents by 1.5 boards per game.

Last Time out for Fort Hays State . . .
December 4, 2010 - The Fort Hays State women's basketball team moved to 2-0 in MIAA play with a 76-70 victory over Nebraska-Omaha Friday night (Dec. 3) at Gross Memorial Coliseum. Four players scored in double figures to help the Lady Tigers improve to 5-1 on the season.
The two teams went back and forth early, with FHSU leading for most of the first 10 minutes before Nebraska-Omaha went on a 15-2 run to take a 23-16 lead. The Tigers would chip away at the deficit and tied the game at 32 with six seconds left in the half on a three-point basket by junior Kimber Weiser. Nebraska-Omaha raced down court and were able to get a layup at the buzzer by Heather Pohl to take a 34-32 lead to the break.
The Lady Tigers would take the lead for good with 14:13 to go following a pair of free throws by Weiser that put them up 43-42. From there FHSU would extend the lead thanks in large part to their free throw shooting. For the game, the Tigers made 21-of-31 (67.7%) attempts at the stripe and it proved to be the difference. UNO was perfect from the line (11-for-11) but had far fewer attempts.
Weiser was the Tigers leading scorer on the night, with most of her damage being done at the free throw line, where she was 12-14. Kara Champlin got her first start of the season and responded with a career-high 15 points and 7 rebounds. The senior also added three steals and a blocked shot in 31 minutes of action. Sophomore Kelsie Sorenson matched her career-high with 12 points while junior Rhys Pihl chipped in 10. The Lady Tigers starting backcourt of Crista Bechard and Kaniesha Pettaway each dished out five assists.  
The Mavericks shot a better field goal percentage and outrebounded FHSU, but committed 23 turnovers in a game the featured six ties and two lead changes. Heather Pohl led the Mavericks charge with 21 points and 7 rebounds. Jessica Zaruba had 12 points and Jamie Nash added 10 for UNO, who now moves to 3-3 on the year, but 0-2 in MIAA conference play.

Last Meeting Between Washburn and Fort Hays state . . .
February 6, 2010 - TOPEKA, Kan. -- The 13th-ranked Lady Blues raced out to an early lead and held off Fort Hays State late for a 50-45 win on Saturday night at Lee Arena. Washburn returns to action on Wednesday night at home against Central Missouri. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.
The Lady Blues (18-3, 12-3 MIAA) jumped out to a 10-0 lead just three minutes into the game. The Tigers (15-6, 8-6 MIAA) clawed their way back with an 11-2 run to trail 12-11 with just under 13 minutes left in the opening half. Washburn was able to push the lead to eight, but a 13-6 run by FHSU cut the lead to one at 28-27 at the intermission.
The second half started much like the first with Hope Gregory scoring seven straight points to put the Lady Blues up 35-27. The lead was seven when the Tigers went on a 9-2 run to knot the game at 42-all with 4:47 remaining in the game. Gregory answered again, this time with back-to-back threes to give Washburn a six-point cushion with 3:01 to play. Fort Hays State got the lead back to three with 48 seconds to play, but Gregory hit 2-of-3 from the free throw line to give WU the five-point victory.
Gregory led the Lady Blues with a career-high 19 points, scoring 15 of Washburn's 22 second half points. She also added seven rebounds. Dayna Rodriguez finished with eight points and a career-high 15 boards. Amanda Fessenden added seven points and tied her career-high with six rebounds.
Erica Biel led three Tigers in double figures with 15. Traci Keyser added 14, while Naomi Bancroft had 11.
The Lady Blues shot 33 percent from the floor, 20-60, and were 5-of-20 from behind the three-point line. Washburn was 5-of-8 from the foul line, season-lows for both makes and attempts. Washburn held the Tigers to 26 percent from the field, 13-of-50, and 29 percent (6-of-21) from three-point range.
The Lady Blues out-rebounded FHSU 43-35 and forced 14 turnovers, while committing 17 of their own.
This is the second straight game the Lady Blues have scored 50 points and just the 14th time under Ron McHenry that Washburn has scored 50 or less. WU is now 2-1 this season and 4-10 all-time under McHenry when scoring 50 points or less.

A Win Would . . .
A win would make the Lady Blues 7-0 for the third straight season ... give Washburn a 41-25 lead in the series with Fort Hays State ... give WU a 3-0 MIAA start for the fourth straight season ... give the Lady Blues 16 straight wins over the Tigers ... give Washburn a 756-336 record in 42 years of basketball.

A Loss Would . . .
A loss would give the Lady Blues a 6-1 record for the second time in four years ... snap Washburn's 15-game winning streak against FHSU ... be the first against FHSU for Ron McHenry ... drop the Lady Blues to 2-1 in the MIAA for the first time since the 2006-07 season ... give Washburn a 755-337 record in 42 years of basketball.

Against Ranked Opponents . . .
The Lady Blues are 38-23 when facing a ranked opponent under Ron McHenry. Washburn was 2-1 against ranked competition last year. The Lady Blues are 11-5 against ranked teams over the past three seasons.

Lady Blues in The MIAA . . .
The Lady Blues are 147-37 (.799) under head coach Ron McHenry in MIAA games and 271-90 (.751) all-time in conference play.  

Lady Blues in Lee Arena . . .
In their 27th season in Lee Arena, the Lady Blues are 330-59 (.848) 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 47 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 139-14 (.908) in home games under Ron McHenry. Five of the 14 losses came in his first year on the Lady Blues bench. In the last 10 seasons, Washburn is 131-9 (.936).

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 755-336 (.692 in 1,091 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 . . .
Washburn is No. 4 in the WBCA USA Today/ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll, 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 139 consecutive polls and has been in the top 25 in 123 consecutive polls, the longest active streak in NCAA-II.

Blues Clues . . .
#1 • Naudia Campbell • C • 6-2 • Jr. • Scored 16 points with eight rebounds in her Washburn debut
#4 • Lindy Arndt • G • 5-11 • Fr. • Hit two 3-Pt field goals in win over CSU Dominguez Hills
#5 • Laura Kinderknecht • G • 5-7 • So. • Has scored in double figures in every game so far this season, including a career-high 17 in the win over UNO
#10 • Dana Channel • G •5-10 • Fr. • Scored two points with two rebounds in her first college game
#14 • Alyssa Mullen • F • 5-11 • Sr. • Scored career-high 17 points in the win over Northwest Missouri State
#15 • Sami McHenry • G • 5-8 • Fr. • Grabbed one rebound in her first collegiate game against CSU Dominguez Hills
#20 • Dana Elliott • F • 5-11 • So. • Tied career-high with five points in just four minutes of action against Drury
#21 • Cassie Lombardino • C • 6-3 • Jr. • Had career-highs of 20 points and nine rebounds in win over Southwestern
#22 • Megan Lassley • G • 5-4 • Jr. • Scored 15 points in first game as a Lady Blue
#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. • Dished out career-high six assists in the win over Lake Superior State
#32 • Sierra Moeller • F • 6-1 • Jr. • Suffered a season-ending injury in exhibition game at Kansas State
#33 • Amy Green • G • 5-10 • Jr. • Grabbed four boards in 13 minutes in first game for Washburn
#42 • Raychel Boling • F • 6-0 • Sr. • Grabbed career-high seven boards in season-opening win over Southwestern
#44 • Laura McMullin • F • 6-1 • So. • Scored five points and grabbed five rebounds in season-opening win over Southwestern

Tip-Ins . . .
• The Lady Blues are 2-4  in games played on December 8, including 0-1 under Ron McHenry. Washburn is 1-0 against FHSU on December 8, an 82-59 win during the 1993-94 season.
• During the current 10-game winning streak over FHSU, the Lady Blues are winning by an average of 18 points per game (70.2-52.2). However, both games last season were decided by 10 points or less.

Up Next . . .
The Lady Blues hit the road for the first time in MIAA play and for the first true road game of the season traveling to Truman State on Saturday Dec. 11 and Missouri Western on Sunday Dec. 19.