Game 19 Lady Blues at Lincoln
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No. 16 Washburn Lady Blues (15-3, 8-1 MIAA)
at Lincoln Blue Tigers (10-5, 4-5 MIAA)
Date: Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Time: 5:30 p.m.
Location: Jefferson City, Mo.
Arena: Jason Gym (2,400)
Radio: 106.9 KTPK FM with Mark Elliott (play-by-play) & Jake Lebahn (color)
Video: America One (fee)
Series Record: WU leads 19-0
Last Meeting: WU 71-51 on 02/26/11 (A)
Washburn Coach Ron McHenry: 305-63 (.829) in 12th year at WU and overall
LU Coach Katie Vaugh: 24-44 (.353) in third year at Lincoln and overall
Micro-Blogging the Blues
(Around) 140-character or less tweets highlighting the season
Laura Kinderknecht is averaging 11.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists since starting the last three games #StartingFive
The Lady Blues have topped 50% seven times and are third in the nation shooting .479 from the field in latest NCAA report #NearlyBetterThanHalf
Washburn's in the top 10 in the nation in five different statistical categories #Top10InNation
Tiara George is 27 of 35 from the field (.771) in her six games and averaging 9.5 ppg #RoyalDebut
Washburn has out-rebounded its opponents in every game this year but two, the loss at Drury and win at PSU #HotOffTheIron
McHenry became the 37th active coach to get to 300 wins on Dec. 17 and among those coaches, he leads them all with an .829 winning pct. #300wins
The Lady Blues are averaging 22.3 turnovers a game in their three losses and just 14.2 a game in their 15 wins #KeepTheBall!
Washburn is shooting 48% overall and 50% in MIAA games. They've topped 50% 7 times this year. #SolidFromTheFloor
Washburn has scored first every game but three and led at halftime in all but four games this year #QuickStart
Stevi Schultz has moved into 2nd in career 3s at WU, now with 182 #WayDownTown
Lady Blues head to Lincoln to wrap up first half of MIAA schedule
The 16th-ranked Lady Blues take their six game winning streak on the road as they face Lincoln Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. in Jason Gym. The game will be carried live on 106.9 FM and links to live video, audio and statistics can be found on wusports.com.
Washburn defeated two ranked teams last week, Pittsburg State and Emporia State, to improve to 15-3 overall and 8-1 in the MIAA. With first-place PSU playing a non-conference game Wednesday, Washburn can move into a tie for the top spot in the league. The Lady Blues have won their last five on the road.
Lincoln dropped its fourth straight MIAA game but has already surpassed last year's win total of two overall and one in the MIAA. The Blue Tigers are 10-5 overall and 4-5 in the MIAA.
Washburn ranks in the top 12 nationally in eight categories and is led in scoring by senior guard
Ebonie Williams with 13.4 points a game. She's 29th in the nation shooting .531 from the field.
The Blue Tigers are led by senior center Vivian Essuon with 15.3 points a game and 10.8 rebounds. She's fifth in the nation shooting .615 from the field and 10th with eight double-doubles.
The Lady Blues have won all 19 games in the series against Lincoln. Washburn defeated the Blue Tigers 14 times as MIAA foes between 1989-90 and 1998-99 before they left the league for 12 seasons, returning last year.
Last Time Out: Washburn 73, Emporia State 66
TOPEKA, Kan. - The 17th-ranked Lady Blues scored first and didn't let the Lady Hornets lead at all in a 73-66 win over No. 18 Emporia State Saturday afternoon in Lee Arena.
Washburn improved to 15-3 overall and 8-1 and remained in first place in the loss column in the MIAA with the win. The Lady Hornets fell to 11-3 overall and 7-2 in the league. Washburn will return to action Wednesday at Lincoln in a 5:30 p.m. game.
Ebonie Williams scored 21 points off 6 of 18 shooting. She hit three 3-pointers and went 6 of 10 from the free throw line.
Cassie Lombardino went 6 of 12 from the field for 13 points and
Laura Kinderknecht made 8 of 8 free throws to help her to 12 points.
The Lady Blues led by double figures most of the second half but a lay-up from Kelsey Balcom made it a six-point game, 67-61, with 57 seconds remaining. Williams sunk a pair of free throws but ESU answered with a 3-pointer from Heather Robben to cut the lead to five. Washburn made four more free throws down the stretch to push it to a three-possession game and hold on for the win.
The Lady Blues shot 42 percent from the field while ESU was 37 percent. Washburn made 4 of 7 3-pointers (57 percent) and the Lady Hornets made 5 of 16 (31 percent). Washburn won the rebound battle 37-35 and committed 10 turnovers to the Lady Hornets' 12. ESU blocked seven shots while Washburn got a hand on just one.
Robben scored 27 points for the Lady Hornets, the most allowed by Washburn all year. She went 7 of 15 from the field and 11 of 11 from the free throw line. Kinderknecht became the 18th player in WU history to go perfect from the line and make at least eight.
The Lady Hornets tied the game at 8-8 at 14:11 and then
Tiara George's lay-up gave Washburn the lead for good. Kinderknecht made two straight free throws at 2:37 to push it to double digits for the first time.
Lombardino's three-point play at 16:53 in the second half gave the Lady Blues a 12-point lead before the Lady Hornets pushed it to single digits one more time. A jumper from George at 7:54 gave Washburn a game-high 15-point lead. A 7-0 run soon after that brought Emporia State within seven and then
Sierra Moeller's long jumper at 3:10 pushed it back to nine before the Lady Hornets climbed within five with under a minute to play.
George finished with eight points off a 4 of 5 performance under the basket. Seven of the Lady Blues' first eight baskets were in the paint and they ended the game with a 34-24 advantage on points inside.
Final notes on the ESU game
Washburn improved to 41-43 all-time against ESU and this remains the only MIAA series that Washburn doesn't hold the all-time advantage on…
Laura Kinderknecht set a career high with her eight free throw makes and attempts…this was the 18th time a Washburn player went 100 percent from the line with at least eight makes…the last player to do so was current assistant coach Jessica Mainz with an 8 of 8 performance on February 2, 2009, also against ESU…this was the first time in the series since 2008-09 that Washburn scored at least 70 points against ESU…through six games,
Tiara George is shooting 77 percent (27 of 35).
Williams tabbed as the MIAA Student Athlete of the Week
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Washburn senior guard
Ebonie Williams was named the MIAA's Student Athlete of the Week after the Lady Blues picked up two wins over nationally-ranked teams last week.
Williams scored 35 points in the two wins last week. Wednesday at No. 10 PSU, she had 14 points and four steals as the Lady Blues handed the Gorillas their first loss of the year. Saturday against No. 18 ESU, she had 21 points and added five rebounds, two assists and two steals. She averaged 17.5 points a game and 3.0 steals.
McHenry reaches milestone 300th win
Ron McHenry began his 12th season with the Lady Blues in 2011-12 and his 87-63 win on December 17 against Missouri Western gave him the 300th win in his career, all at WU. McHenry now has a 305-63 (.829) record.
McHenry entered the season second in NCAA Division II history with an .829 winning percentage (among coaches with at least 10 years) and second among active coaches in winning percentage (among coaches with at least five years). Thirty-six active DII coaches had reached the 300-win level and McHenry became the 37th. Among coaches who have at least 300 wins, only Lloyd Clark (Delta State 1984-2002) has a betting winning percentage (.834).
McHenry has had at least 23 wins in every year but his first. He's reached the 30-win mark three times. After a 13-14 record in his first season, 2000-01, McHenry has brought the Lady Blues to the NCAA tournament 10 straight times.
McHenry, a national champion in 2004-05, is the Washburn career leader in winning percentage among the five coaches since the program started in 1969-70. He is second in career wins at WU behind Patty Dick with 431 from 1977-00.
Lady Blues jump one spot to 16th in USA Today ESPN national poll
The Lady Blues continued their climb in the poll, this time jumping one spot to 16th in the latest USA Today ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll released Tuesday.
Washburn is one of three ranked MIAA teams. Pittsburg State is 15th and Emporia State is 20th. Washburn beat both those teams last week.
The Lady Blues were 19th in the previous poll and they have been ranked in all eight polls this year. They were left out of the final poll last year but have been ranked in 148 of the last 149 polls, dating back to week three of the 2002-03 season.
MIAA coaches and media pick Lady Blues first
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Lady Blues were picked as the team to beat in the MIAA's coaches and media preseason polls released during the MIAA Virtual Media Day. Washburn was a unanimous pick in the coaches poll and earned 12 of 16 first place votes in the media poll.
The Lady Blues, second-place finishers last year with a 22-7 overall record and a 17-5 MIAA mark, were picked in front of Emporia State in both polls. Defending regular season and tournament champion Northwest Missouri was picked third in the media poll and tied for fifth in the coaches poll.
Lady Blues remain near top of several NCAA statistical categories
The Lady Blues are in the top 12 of eight different statistical categories in the January 12 NCAA report. Washburn ranks in the top three in the nation in rebound margin, scoring margin, field goal percentage and 3-point field goal percentage. The Lady Blues are in the top 12 in assists per game, assist to turnover ratio, field goal percentage defense and scoring defense.
Ebonie Williams ranks 29th in the nation shooting .553 from the field and
Stevi Schultz is 34th in 3-point field goal percentage and 3-pointers per game.
The Lady Blues rank highly in rebounds because they have only been out-rebounded twice this year. Their shooting percentages are helped by the fact that they've shot 50 percent or better from the field eight times and 45 percent or better from long range eight times. They have only allowed opponents to shoot 40 percent or better once this year.
Schultz takes over 2nd in career 3-pointers at Washburn
Senior guard
Stevi Schultz is second in school history, now with 182 3-pointers in her career. Earlier this year she passed Lora Westling, who had 144 from 2001-05. Brooke Ubelaker (2003-07) is the career leader with 236 at WU.
This year she's shooting a career-high 41 percent from 3-point range. Schultz' 82 3-pointers last year was the fourth-highest single-season total in school history.
December 7 at FHSU she went without a 3-pointer for the first time since the end of the 2009-10 season. She made one in all 29 games last year and the first 10 this year.
Schultz nears 1,000 points
Stevi Schultz has 894 career points in her four years at Washburn and her 11.1 points a game this year has her on average to pass 1,000 points before the regular season ends. She would become the 21st Lady Blue to reach 1,000 career points. Corkey Stiger was the last to reach that milestone, scoring 1,047 in two seasons from 2006-08.
Season Flash Backs: Don't Forget...
Four in a row over 50: The Lady Blues topped the 50 percent mark in field goal shooting in four straight games, all MIAA contests, from December 10 to January 3. They averaged a .562 field goal percentage during that stretch.
Keeping 'em under 40: The Lady Blues kept their first 13 opponents to under 40 percent shooting. Central Missouri's .469 effort on December 31 was the first to top 40 percent. Prior to that game, teams were shooting just 32 percent against Washburn.
300th win for McHenry: Lady Blues coach
Ron McHenry got his 300th career win, all at Washburn, on December 17 against Missouri Western.
400 straight under 100: The Lady Blues 67-60 win at Fort Hays State on December 7 marked the 400th straight game Washburn has kept opponents under 100 points. The last time was on January 27, 1999, at Emporia State.
School-record margin of victory: Washburn's 92-point win over Tabor on November 14 is the highest in school history. The previous largest was by 87 on November 25, 1983 to St. John's (Kan.), 113-26. This was Washburn's 11th 100-point game in school history and first since winning 102-43 to Southwestern on November 23, 2009.
Another 100-point game!: Washburn made it back-to-back 100-point games for the first time in school history with a 108-60 win over Southwestern on November 16. The Lady Blues had record triple-digit games twice in the same season in 2005-06 and 1983-84 but never in consecutive games.
Happiest Place on Earth: The Lady Blues went 3-0 in the season-opening Disney Tip-Off West Coast Classic to claim the trophy.
Ebonie Williams earned MVP honor.
Near DI Upset: A last-second lay-up spoiled Washburn's exhibition upset bid, 52-50, at Kansas State on November 8.
Ebonie Williams led WU with 15 points.
Last time out against Lincoln
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The 15th-ranked Lady Blues closed out the regular season portion of their schedule by drubbing Lincoln 71-51 on February 26, 2011, at Jason Gym. The game was tied in the early going when
Stevi Schultz drained a three and
Alyssa Mullen scored a bucket to put Washburn in front for good at 12-7. The Blue Tigers pulled to within a pair at 14-12 with 11:36 to play in the half, but a quick 7-0 run put the Lady Blues in front 21-12 with just over seven minutes left in the period.
Washburn extended the lead to 12 on a Schultz 3-pointer with 4:14 remaining in the opening stanza, but Lincoln scored six of the final eight points of the half to pull within single digits, 30-22, at the break.
The lead was nine with just over 18 minutes to play in the game when the Lady Blues went on a 13-2 run to open a 20-point lead with 12:46 to play in the game. The Blue Tigers got back to within 13 at 59-46 with just under six minutes to play, but back-to-back treys from
Laura Kinderknecht and Schultz pushed the lead back to 19 with 4:48 to play. The Blues pushed the lead to as many as 23 in the late stages of the game.
Mullen led four Lady Blues in double figures with 15 points, she also had six rebounds. Kinderknecht had 14 points, while Schultz and
Cassie Lombardino had 13 points each. Lombardino had a team-high seven boards, while
Megan Lassley tied her career-high with eight assists.
Washburn shot 46.4 percent (26 of 56) from the floor and 36.4 percent (8 of 22) from three point range. The Lady Blues were 11 of 13 from the foul line and had 17 assists compared to a season-low four turnovers.
Vivian Essuon led the Blue Tigers with 20 points, while Jackeya Mitchell had 14. Lincoln shot 41.7 percent (20 of 48) from the field and 29.2 percent (7 of 24) from beyond the arc. LU was 4 of 6 from the charity stripe.
Up next for the Lady Blues
The Lady Blues will start the second half of the MIAA schedule with a game Wednesday, January 25 against Northwest Missouri in Lee Arena. Washburn defeated the Bearcats 71-53 to tip off the conference schedule on December 3.
Blue Notes: Player-By-Player Tip-Ins
#1 Katie Moyer • 5-5 Jr. G • Olpe, Kan. • Independence CC
Had first WU career points with 6 against Tabor...played in first eight games this year and seven total..averaged 7.3 points as a sophomore at Independence CC last year.
#3 Casyn Buchman • 5-9 Fr. G • McPherson, Kan. • McPherson HS
Has played in all 18 games...had career-high four assists November 28 against Evangel...scored career-high eight points twice, first against Southwestern November 16 and second on November 28 against Evangel...scored five straight for Washburn during second-half 8-0 run in win over St. Martin's at Disney...scored 14.0 points a game her senior year at McPherson High School.
#4 Lindy Arndt • 5-11 So. G • Emporia, Kan. • Emporia HS
Has played in 11 games this year...had her first points of year with season-high four November 14 against Tabor...scored 21 points in 11 games last year.
#5 Laura Kinderknecht • 5-7 Jr. G • St. Mary's, Kan. • St. Mary's HS
Has played in all 18 games this year and has started the last three games...averaging 5.3 points and 2.2 rebounds a game...averaging 1.9 assists a game...is averaging 11.3 points a game in last three, had season-high 14 points January 11 at PSU with 5 of 11 performance from the field...had a career-high eight rebounds January 7 against MSSU...had a career high eight free throws during 8 for 8 performance from the line on January 14 against ESU...averaged 10.7 points a game last year, starting all 29.
#10 Dana Channel • 5-10 So. G • Rossville, Kan. • Rossville HS
Had five points twice this year (Tabor and East Central) to tie career high...set a career high November 28 against Evangel with five rebounds...has played in 10 games with 13 points and 12 rebounds...played in 23 games last year scoring 33 points.
#11 Alyssa Nikkel • 5-8 Fr. G • Goddard, Kan. • Cheney HS
Has played in 11 games this year with nine points and three assists...scored five points against CSUDH with a 3-pointer...had her first points in MIAA action with a 3-pointer January 3 at Southwest Baptist...led Cheney High School in scoring, assists and steals as Cardinals went undefeated with a state title her senior year in 2010-11.
#15 Sami McHenry • 5-8 So. G • Topeka, Kan. • Shawnee Heights HS
Has played in four games this year with three rebounds and two points in 10 minutes...scored her first field goal of the year January 7 against MSSU...played as a libero/defensive specialist on the No. 5-ranked Washburn volleyball team that ended its season in the NCAA South Central Region final last weekend...scored two points in eight games last year...father is head coach
Ron McHenry.
#20 Dana Elliott • 5-11 Jr. F • Wamego, Kan. • Rock Creek HS
Started the first eight games this year and has played in all 18...averaging 4.5 points, 1.9 assists and 3.2 rebounds...had a career-high 11 points and seven rebounds December 7 at Fort Hays State...had a career-high six assists November 14 against Tabor and matched that December 17 against MWSU...played 28 games off the bench last year and averaged 2.1 points and 1.8 rebounds.
#21 Cassie Lombardino • 6-3 Sr. C • Bonner Springs, Kan. • Basehor-Linwood HS
Has started every game this year...has reached double figures in 11 games this year...third on the team averaging 10.5 points a game...second on team averaging 5.4 rebounds and leads team with 1.5 blocks a game...had season-high 18 points December 3 at NWMSU off 8 of 11 shooting...had career-high six blocks November 19 at Midwestern State...just missed a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds November 6 against Hawaii Pacific...started every game last year and tied for team lead with 15.0 points a game...earned second team all-MIAA.
#22 Megan Lassley • 5-4 Sr. G • Wichita, Kan. • Seward County CC
Made her first start of season November 28 against Evangel and had started seven straight before missing the last three games with an injury...shot 5 of 6 November 14 against Tabor for 14 points, one off her career high...scoring 4.3 points with 1.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists this year...hit three 3-pointers against Hawaii Pacific for nine points...had three steals against St. Martin's to tie a career high...was an every-game starter last year, averaging 7.1 points and a team-high 3.5 assists a game.
#23 Stormye Everett • 5-9 Jr. G • Aurora, Colo. • Western Neb. CC
Has played in 12 games...averaging 3.6 points and 2.0 rebounds...had 11 points at Disney against Hawaii Pacific in just nine minutes...hit 5 of 7 shots in that game...averaged 13.7 points a game in 2009-10 as a sophomore at Western Nebraska CC.
#24 Ebonie Williams • 5-8 Sr. G • Hagerstown, Md. • Seton Hall
Has started all 18 games...shooting 53 percent this year, which was third best in the MIAA and 29th in the nation in most recent reports, and 48 percent from 3-point range...has scored in double figures in 14 of her 18 games this year...leads Washburn with 13.4 points a game...set a team season-high with 23 points January 3 at Southwest Baptist...scored team-high 21 points January 14 against No. 18 Emporia State with three 3-pointers...named Disney Classic tournament MVP...a DI transfer from Seton Hall where she scored over 1,000 points in her three years there, leading her team every year.
#25 Stevi Schultz • 5-9 Sr. G • Neodesha, Kan. • Neodesha HS
Second in career 3-pointers at Washburn with 182...had first double-double of the year with 12 points and 13 rebounds at FHSU on December 7...has reached double figures in 11 of 17 games...second on team with 11.1 points a game while averaging 3.0 assists and 4.6 rebounds...tied a career high with six assists against Hawaii Pacific and then set a career high with seven November 19 at Midwestern State...scored 15 points in exhibition at Kansas State...tied for team lead in scoring last year with 15.0 points a game and earned first team all-MIAA and second team all-region.
#30 Brittney Lynch • 6-1 Fr. F • Omaha, Neb. • Elkhorn HS
Reached double figures for second time this year on December 17 against Missouri Western with 11 points...went 4 of 5 from the field that game...had breakout game with team-high 16 points and nine rebounds November 14 against Tabor...shot 6 of 10 from the field that game...has played off the bench in every game and is averaging 5.3 points and 2.7 rebounds...shooting 55 percent from the field...in high school she averaged 15.8 points and 7.9 rebounds her senior year.
#32 Sierra Moeller • 6-1 Jr. F • Pierre, S.D. • Boise State
Has started all 18 games in her Washburn debut after sitting out two straight years...leading the team with 7.7 rebounds a game getting double figures seven times...scored season-high 16 points November 28 against Evangel while going 5 of 8 from the field and 6 of 9 from free throw line...second on the team with 18 blocks...missed last year after a knee injury in an exhibition game and missed 2009-10 after transferring from Boise State the year before...scored in double figures for first time with 11 points November 14 against Tabor and then added 15 against Southwestern the next time...averaging 7.4 points a game this year...as a freshman at Boise State in 2008-09 she averaged 3.8 points and 3.7 rebounds a game.
#33 Tiara George • 6-1 Jr. F • Baton Rouge, La. • Angelina CC
Played her first game in over a year on December 17 against Missouri Western...went 8 of 9 from the field for game-high 17 points...her second game, December 31 at UCM, she went 5 for 5 for 10 points and has scored double figures in three of her six games this year...is 27 of 35 (.771) from the field this year...transferred to Washburn midway though last year after playing junior college from 2008-09 to 2009-10...averaged 10.1 points and 8.7 rebounds a game and shot 56 percent in 2009-10 at Angelina CC (Texas).
#42 Ashley Timm • 5-10 Fr. G • Pratt, Kan. • Skyline Hs
Had her first collegiate action November 14 against Tabor, playing four minutes without a point...has played in three games for eight total minutes with a rebound...she helped Skyline High School to a sub-state runner-up finish three straight years.
#44 Laura McMullin • 6-1 Jr. F • Sedalia, Mo. • Sacred Heart HS
Has played in 16 games and is averaging 5.3 points and 3.4 rebounds...had a double-double November 18 against East Central with 10 points and 11 rebounds, the first double-double of the year for Washburn and second of her career...scored 11 points in opener against CSUDH off 5 of 7 shooting...also had six rebounds that game...shooting 48 percent from the field this year...averaged 2.7 points and 4.0 rebounds last year off the bench.
