Media Information
Date: Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Emporia, Kan.
Arena: White Auditorium (5,000)
Television: MIAA Television Network - Cox 22
Radio: 106.9 KTPK Topeka with Mark Elliott (pxp) and Bruce Steinbrock (color)
Live Stats: www.emporia.edu/athletics
Audio Web Stream: Through wusports.com
Video Web Stream: Through wusports.com

Complete Game Notes

Lady Blues set for Turnpike Tussle
The No. 7-ranked Lady Blues travel to Emporia for the season's first installment of the Turnpike Tussle against 10th-ranked Emporia State on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for just after 1 p.m. at White Auditorium.
The last time out, Washburn battled Pittsburg State for a hard fought 65-57 win at Lee Arena. Cassie Lombardino led all scorers with 20 points, while Alyssa Mullen pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds, the most boards by a Lady Blue since 2002.
The Lady Blues are led by three players averaging in double figures. Lombardino leads the team at 17.9 points per game. Stevi Schultz is averaging 14.2 per contest and Laura Kinderknecht is chipping in 10.8 per outing.
Washburn will face an Emporia State team that is coming off an 86-63 win at Lincoln on Wednesday night. The Lady Hornets have won eight of their last nine games.

Lady Blues on radio . . .
The Lady Blues game on Saturday afternoon at Emporia State will be broadcast on 106.9 FM KTPK Topeka. Mark Elliott will be calling the play-by-play action with Bruce Steinbrock providing the color-commentary. The game 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.

Lady Blues on television . . .
The game will also be televised by the MIAA Television Network. Cox Cable subscribers can watch the game on Cox channel 22. Mark Ewing will be doing play-by-play for the television broadcast with former Missouri and Emporia State head coach Cindy Stein providing the color-commentary.
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 280-54 (.838) overall record and a 153-38 (.801) 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.)
Emporia State head coach Jory Collins, is in his first season as the head coach of the Lady Hornet program after eight seasons as an assistant. He has ESU off to an 11-2 start, including 8-1 in MIAA play and a No. 10 national ranking. Collins is a 2002 graduate of Emporia State.

Last time out for the Lady Blues . . .
January 12, 2011 - TOPEKA, Kan. -- The seventh-ranked Lady Blues used a second half run and held off Pittsburg State 65-57 in a tough battle on Wednesday night at Lee Arena. The back-and-forth battle saw nine ties and eight lead changes.
Washburn (12-1, 8-1 MIAA) grabbed an early three-point lead on three free throws from Laura Kinderknecht. The Gorillas (6-7, 4-5 MIAA) battled back and grabbed their first lead of the game at 7-5 with 16:19 to play in the half. PSU pushed the lead to as many as five before the Lady Blues rallied tie the game at 12-all. The game was tied for the sixth time at 21-21 with 1:19 to play when Megan Lassley drilled a trey to put Washburn up. Drew Roberts answered for Pitt State with a three of her own with :08 left to tie the score, but Lassley uncorked a 35-footer that hitting nothing bet net at the buzzer and WU led 27-24 at halftime.
The Gorillas opened the second half on an 11-1 run to grab their biggest lead of the night at 36-28 with 17:23 to play in the game. Washburn scored six quick points on jumpers from Kinderknecht, Naudia Campbell and Alyssa Mullen to pull within two at the 15:02 mark.
Pittsburg State pushed the lead back to six before, but Washburn used a 10-1 run to take the lead for good at 44-41 with 10:38 remaining. The lead was two when Stevi Schultz rattled off nine straight points for Washburn and the lead grew to nine. A layup by Cassie Lombardino gave the Blues their biggest lead of the night at 56-45 with 6:57 remaining in regulation.
The Gorillas were able to get within five with 1:27 to play, but a bucket by Kinderknecht and a free throw by Lombardino gave WU the final margin of victory.
Lombardino led the Lady Blues with 20 points, while adding nine rebounds. Schultz had 14 points and Kinderknecht added 10. Mullen fiinished with a career-high 16 rebounds, the most by a Lady Blue since Crystal Walker pulled down 16 boards against Emporia State on January 23, 2002.
Washburn shot 39 percent (21-of-54) from the floor and 44 percent (4-of-9) from behind the three-point line, while making 19-of-28 from the charity stripe for 68 percent. Washburn out-rebounded the Gorillas 45-38.
Courtney Tate led three Gorillas in double figures with 13 points. Drew Roberts had 11, while Kylee Baldetti chipped in 10 to go along with 10 rebounds.
PSU shot 37 percent (23-of-61) from the field and were 6-of-21 from three-point range for 29 percent. The Gorillas were 5-of-10 from the foul line as well.
The Lady Blues are back in action this Saturday for a top-10 showdown at Emporia State in the first installment of the Turnpike Tussle. The game is slated for a 1:08 p.m tip-off. The game is being televised on Cox 22 as part of MIAA TV.

Notes from the win over Pittsburg State . . .
• Washburn improved to 8-1 in MIAA play for first time since the 2006-07 season
• Gave Washburn two straight wins over the Gorillas
• Extended Washburn's home court winning streak to 14 games
• Extended streak of games with at least one 3FG to 215 in-a-row
Washburn/Emporia State series notes . . .
Emporia State leads the overall series 41-39, while Washburn is 19-9 against the Lady Hornets during the Ron McHenry era. The teams have split the regular season series each of the past two years. Washburn had won four in-a-row before that and the Blues have captured eight of the last 11 meetings and are 2-2 in the last four games at White Auditorium.
During that 11-game span Washburn is averaging 70.0 points per game and has allowed 63.1 ppg to ESU.  In the four games played at White Auditorium WU is averaging 67.3 points per game and giving up 66.0 per game to the Lady Hornets.

About Emporia State . . .
The Lady Hornets enter the Turnpike Tussle 11-2 overall, 8-1 in the MIAA and ranked No. 10 in the latest WBCA coaches' poll after their 86-63 win over Lincoln on Wednesday night. ESU has won eight of its last nine games.
Emporia State is led in scoring by senior forward Alli Volkens who is averaging 16.0 points per game. She also leads the team and the MIAA in rebounding at 11.3 per contest. Other Lady Hornets averaging in double figures include Kelsey Balcom at 11.6 points per outing, Jocelyn Cummings at 11.2 and Rachel Hanf chips in 10.8 per contest.
ESU averages 74.8 points per game and holds opponents to just 62.1 per outing. The Lady Hornets shoot 44 percent from the floor and hold their opponents to just 34 percent shooting. Emporia State leads the league in rebounding (44.4/game) and rebound margin (+9.6/game).

Last Time out for Emporia State . . .
ESU Sports Info. - January 12, 2011 - January 12, 2011-The #10 Lady Hornets jumped out to a 10-4 lead and never trailed in an 86-63 victory over Lincoln on Wednesday night in Jefferson City, Mo. Kelsey Balcom scored a career high 26 points to lead four Lady Hornets in double figures.
The Lady Hornets led 49-28 at the half after shooting .515 from the field with just two turnovers. ESU's lead would grow to 28 points with 8:40 left in the game before settling for the 23 point victory.
Balcom was joined in double figures by Jocelyn Cummings with 17, Rachel Hanf with 15 and Alli Volkens with 11 points.
The win sets up another top ten battle in the Turnpike Tussle against #7 Washburn on Saturday in White Auditorium. Tip-off is set for just after 1 p.m. and will be shown on the MIAA Television Network.

Last Meeting Between Washburn and Emporia State . . .
February 24, 2010 - EMPORIA, Kan. -- The 11th-ranked Washburn Lady Blues captured their seventh MIAA championship and sixth under Ron McHenry with a 63-51 win over No. 12 Emporia State on Wednesday night at White Auditorium. The Lady Blues will be the No. 1 seed in the MIAA Tournament and will play at noon on Thursday, March 4 in Kansas City.
Washburn (23-3, 17-3 MIAA) jumped out to an early seven-point advantage at 11-4. Hope Gregory scored the first four points for the Lady Blues and Amanda Fessenden knocked down two treys. The lead was five at 13-8 with 11:22 to play in the opening half, but a scoring drought of five minutes allowed the Lady Hornets (22-4, 16-4 MIAA) to take a 15-13 lead. Washburn tied the game on a pair of Stevi Schultz free throws with 5:53 to play in the period and a three by Gregory sparked an 8-0 run and gave WU the lead for good.
ESU scored two quick buckets to cut the lead to four and the teams traded buckets to end the half with Washburn leading 25-21.
Gregory and Fessenden led the Lady Blues with nine points each in the opening stanza.
A 6-1 run to start the second half gave Washburn a nine-point lead at 31-22. The lead was nine at 35-26 when the Lady Hornets went on an 8-0 run to cut the lead to 35-34 with 11:28 remaining in the game. Washburn used a 10-3 run to push the lead back to eight with 7:50 to play.
Emporia State cut the lead to five at 50-45 with 3:47 remaining in regulation, but the Lady Blues made eight straight free throws to open a 58-45 lead with 1:26 remaining. ESU hit two quick threes to bring the lead to eight, but Gregory made four straight free throws to finish the game and give Washburn the 12-point win and the conference title.
The Lady Blues shot 32 percent from the floor, 18-of-57 and were 6-of-19 from three-point range for 32 percent. WU was also 21-of-26 from the foul line.
Gregory led Washburn with her fourth double-double of the season, 17 points and 13 rebounds. Dayna Rodriguez added 13 points, while Brette Ulsaker chipped in 11. Washburn also out-rebounded ESU 43-40.
Cassondra Boston led ESU with 13 points, but was just 3-of-16 from the field. Sophia Lenard scored 11 points and Alli Volkens added 10 for Emporia State who shot 29 percent for the game, 17-of-59. The Lady Hornets shot 15 percent from behind the arc, 4-of-27 and were 13-of-20 from the charity stripe for 65 percent.
The MIAA championship is the second in the past three years for Washburn and the sixth in the past eight seasons under Ron McHenry. The win also snapped Emporia State's 18-game home winning streak.

A Win Would . . .
A win would give the Lady Blues a 13-1 record for the third straight year ... pull Washburn to within 41-40 in the overall series with Emporia State ... give WU a 9-1 MIAA record and sole possession of first place in the league ... give the Lady Blues two straight wins over ESU and two straight wins in Emporia ... give Washburn a 762-337 record in 42 years of basketball.

A Loss Would . . .
A loss would give the Lady Blues an 12-2 record for the first time since the 2007-08 season ... drop the Lady Blues to 8-2 in the MIAA and into second place in the league standings ... extend ESU's lead in the overall series to 42-39 ... give Washburn a 761-338 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 and the Lady Blues are 11-5 against ranked teams over the past three seasons. This is the 24th straight meeting between Washburn and ESU where both teams are ranked in the top 25. The Lady Blues are 16-7 in the previous 23 meetings.

Lady Blues in The MIAA . . .
The Lady Blues are 153-38 (.801) under head coach Ron McHenry in MIAA games and 277-91 (.753) all-time in conference play.  

Lady Blues in Lee Arena . . .
In their 27th season in Lee Arena, the Lady Blues are 334-59 (.850) 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 143-14 (.911) 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 135-9 (.938).

Lady Blues on the road . . .
The Lady Blues are 79-31 (.718) on the road under Ron McHenry, including 2-1 this season. 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 761-337 (.693 in 1,098 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 moved up one spot to No. 7 in the latest WBCA USA Today/ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll released on Tuesday afternoon.
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 143 consecutive polls and has been ranked in the top 25 in 127 consecutive polls, the longest active streak in NCAA-II.

Lombardino named MIAA Player of the Week . . .
Junior center Cassie Lombardino was named MIAA Player of the Week for her performance in two Washburn wins last week. She scored a career-high 35 points to go along with eight rebounds and two steals in the win over Southwest Baptist. She followed it up with 30 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in the road win over Missouri Southern on Saturday. Her back-to-back 30+ point performances were the most points scored by a Lady Blue in consecutive games since Corkey Stiger scored 31 points each in games against Emporia State and South Dakota during the 2007-08 season.

Blues Clues . . .
#1 • Naudia Campbell • C • 6-2 • Jr. • Scored 12 points with five rebounds in loss at Missouri Western
#4 • Lindy Arndt • G • 5-11 • Fr. • Hit two 3FG's in win over CSU Dominguez Hills
#5 • Laura Kinderknecht • G • 5-7 • So. • Made career-high five 3FG's in win over Central Missouri
#10 • Dana Channel • G •5-10 • Fr. • Scored four points in the win over Fort Hays State
#14 • Alyssa Mullen • F • 5-11 • Sr. • Career-high 16 rebounds against Pittsburg State were the most by a Lady Blue since 2002
#15 • Sami McHenry • G • 5-8 • Fr. • Scored two points against Missouri Western
#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. • Currently leads the MIAA in scoring at 17.9 points per game
#22 • Megan Lassley • G • 5-4 • Jr. • Dished out career-high six assists in wins over CSU-Dominguez Hills and Northwest Missouri State
#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. • Scored career-high 26 points to go along with 11 rebounds in the win over Fort Hays 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 7-6 in games played on January 15, including 2-0 under Ron McHenry. Washburn is 0-1 against Emporia State on January 15, a 63-62 loss on Jan. 15, 1980.

Up Next . . .
The Lady Blues return home to host Lincoln on Wednesday, January 19 to close out the first half of the MIAA schedule.