OPENING TIP
>> After picking up two-straight home victories by 40+ points, the Washburn women's basketball squad hits the road to take on Rockhurst (1-2) this Saturday, Nov. 23. Tip-off in Kansas City is slated for 5:30 p.m.
>> The Ichabods are on a three-game winning streak after defeating Baker, 89-47, last time out.
>> The Hawks are coming off their first win of the season with an 88-59 decision over Ottawa.
>> The Ichabods boast the second-highest scoring offense in the MIAA, averaging 81.8 ppg.
>> Washburn is paced in scoring by Reagan Phelan, who is averaging 15.8 ppg.
>> She leads the league in three-point field goal percentage hitting 12-of-20 (.600) attempts from deep.
>> Hunter Bentley leads the team in rebounds, pulling down 7.0 rpg. Against Baker, she grabbed four offensive boards.
>> Bentley is 12 points away from 500 in her career.
>> In the three Washburn wins, the Ichabods have shot .463 percent or better from the field.
>> The Ichabods were 8-of-14 from behind the three-point line in the first half against Baker.
ABOUT THE ROCKHURST HAWKS
>> The Hawks went 10-16 (6-12 GLVC) last season and were picked 13th in the 2019-20 GLVC Preseason Coaches Poll.
>> This season's roster features nine returners, with their top-returner being Madeline Ronshausen. She led the team in scoring (19.1 ppg), rebounds (4.3 rpg), and assists (2.9 apg) to earn all-GLVC first-team honors.
>> Rockhurst is 1-2 to start the new season.
>> The Hawks are averaging 70.7 ppg and have allowed 80.0 ppg.
>> From three-point land, Rockhurst shoots at a .303 percentage (20-of-66), and the Hawks are .654 percent (34-of-52) from the charity stripe.
>> Two players are averaging double-figures each game so far. Maghan Urbanski leads the way with a 14.7 average while Ronshausen is close behind at the 13.0 ppg mark.
>> Everyone on the team has contributed in rebounds, led by Daly Sullivan with 13 (4.3 rpg).
HEAD COACH LARRY PARK
>> Larry Park is in his 11th season on the bench for the Hawks.
>> He led the team a second place finish in the GLVC West Division in the 2016-17 season with an 18-10 record.
>> Park is a tenured coach with 36 seasons of experience. Prior to becoming the Rockhurst women's head coach, he served as an assistant coach for the men's program starting in 1996.
>> Before joining the Hawks' staff, he spent time as an assistant coach at Avila, Ottawa, and UMKC.
>> He graduated from UMKC, where he was a two-year letterman in basketball from 1980-82.
SERIES WITH ROCKHURST
>> Washburn leads the all-time series, 19-2, and is on a 15 game winning streak.
>> The two teams have not met since Nov. 20, 200
>> The first two meetings of the series were played at Lee Arena in 1982 and January of 1987
LAST TIME OUT FOR ROCKHURST (Nov. 20, 2019)
ROCKHURST 88 (1-2)
OTTAWA 59 (0-5)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Rockhurst's depth was on display in an 88-59 win over Ottawa University as 17 Hawks scored in Tuesday night's home opener at Mason-Halpin Field House.
Madeline Ronshausen scored a game-high 14 points, including three-of-four from three-point range.
Meghan Urbanski and Hailey Dolphin reached double figures as well with 13 and 11 points, respectively. Urbanski matched Ronshausen's three-point output also going three-for-four. The Hawks returned to form, converting nine-of-21 three-pointers (42.9 percent).
Daly Sullivan was active for the Hawks, tallying eight points, four rebounds and four assists. Rachel Holden added seven points, while Lauren Krissman posted six points and a team-leading seven rebounds.
Rockhurst opened the game with a 15-6 run. The Hawks would lead 22-15 at the end of the first quarter after a Ronshausen three-pointer in the closing seconds. RU stretched the lead as high as 17 in the second quarter at 43-26 and took a 12-point lead into the break.
The Hawks gained separation in the third quarter, holding the Braves to just 21 percent shooting from the floor (four-of-19). A Holden layup gave the Hawks a 21-point lead, 63-42, heading into the final frame.
Rockhurst kept the intensity level high in the fourth quarter even as Coach Larry Park got deeper into his bench. The Hawks shot an efficient nine-of-16 from the field (56.3 percent) in the final period, closing out a second half which saw the home team outscore Ottawa 45-28.
Inside the Box Score:
The Hawks shot north of 50 percent, going 34-of-67 from the floor.
Rockhurst showcased great ball movement, racking up 21 assists.
Freshman Molly Hummel led the team in plus/minus, as the Hawks had a 21-point advantage in the 16 minutes she was on the floor.
LAST TIME OUT FOR WASHBURN (Nov. 18, 2019)
WASHBURN 89 (3-1)
BAKER 46 (4-0)
TOPEKA, Kan. – Five Ichabods finished in double-figure scoring as Washburn led from start to finish in the 89-47 victory over Baker in Lee Arena on Monday evening. Washburn has won three-straight to move up to 3-1 on the season. For the Baker Wildcats it was an exhibition game.
Washburn finished the night making half of its shot attempts (32-of-64) while holding Baker to 28.3 percent shooting (15-of-53). The Ichabods earned 33 points off of three-pointers going 11-of-28 from behind the arc. The Ichabods out-rebounded the Wildcats, 47-28, and pulled down 19 offensive boards which they converted into 23 points.
Shelbe Piggie scored the first four points of the night followed by a Reagan Phelan three-pointer to give Washburn a 7-0 run to start the game. Phelan hit another triple at 4:11 in the first quarter to extend Washburn's lead to double-figures at 17-7 and the Ichabods would hold that double-digit lead for the remainder of the game. Washburn went into halftime with a 23 point lead at 46-23 and shot 58.62 percent (17-of-29) from the floor and shot 57.14 percent (8-of-14) from deep.
The second half started much like the first with Piggie getting things started with a jump shot and then a three-pointer to score the first five points. Washburn put together a 7-0 scoring run, fueled by five points from Sabela Reigosa, to go in front 62-29 with 3:23 left in the third quarter.
The Ichabods started the fourth quarter with a 69-37 advantage and led by 30 or more for the rest of the game. Washburn tacked on an 11-0 run while holding Baker scoreless for five minutes to take its largest lead of the game at 89-46. The Wildcats scored the final point of the game with a free throw with 1:01 left in regulation.
Piggie led all scorers and tallied a career-high 18 points as she was 8-for-11. Phelan contributed 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field with four triples and also handed out five assists. Hunter Bentley added a dozen points and pulled down six rebounds and made two blocks. Abby Oliver and Reigosa both finished with 10 points with Reigosa having a perfect night shooting, going 2-for-2 from the field and was 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Alexis McAfee tied a career-best in assists with six. Mia Castaneda hit three of Washburn's 11 three-pointers.
LAST TIME AGAINST ROCKHURST (Nov. 16, 2018)
WASHBURN 69 (1-2)
ROCKHURST 49 (2-1)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A hot first half was enough to propel the Washburn women's basketball team to a 69-49 victory Friday at Rockhurst, ending a two-game skid as it moved to 1-2 on the year.
Washburn trailed by as much as seven during the opening three minutes as the Hawks (2-1) used a pair of three-pointers to jump out to a 10-3 lead with 2:54 into the first period. The Ichabods bounced back with an 9-0 run which was capped with a three-ball from Taylor Blue who finished with 14 points. From there it was all Washburn as it closed the stanza with a 6-2 run as Reagan Phelan netted four of her nine on the night.
Leading 18-12 to start the second, Washburn cruised as Shelbe Piggie pushed the margin to six as she pulled up and sank a three to make it 21-15 with 8:48 till half. Piggie finished with a career-high 14 points. From there, the Ichabods cruised as they stretched the advantage to double-figures following back-to-back threes from Blue and Piggie en route to taking a 41-23 advantage into the break.
Washburn continued to vibe in the third as it opened with a 12-2 run with four points from Nicole Murugarren and Alexis McAfee before eventually a Mackenzie Loe layup at 4:25 pushed the gap to 55-25.
Rockhurst outscored WU, 21-10, in the fourth but by that point the game was well out reach.
The Ichabods were an efficient 14 of 29 shooting from the field during the opening 20 minutes with 6 of 10 from three-point range. In the second, Washburn converted 11 of 29 from the floor and 1 of 7 from distance.
Comparatively, Washburn out shot RU, .431 to .290, in addition to controlling the boards, with a 43-32 advantage in rebounding. The Ichabods paced the Hawks in points in the paint, 32-12, while they also converted for 16 second-chance points.
Blue and Piggie tied for the team lead in scoring, while McAfee with 10 points. Phelan dished out a game-best six assists, while McAfee connected with four. Murugarren had a career-high seven rebounds, with Loe and McAfee pulling down six each.
WASHBURN COACHES
>> McHenry is entering his 20th season at Washburn and holds an overall record of 449-140 (261-98 MIAA).
>> McHenry, a national champion and the WBCA Division II Coach of the Year in 2005, is a four-time MIAA Coach of the Year as well as a two-time region Coach of the Year.
>> He has led the program to eight MIAA regular season titles and seven MIAA tournament titles as well as to 12 NCAA Tournament appearances.
>> His .761 winning percentage is 16th-best in Division II.
>> He was the quickest head coach to record 400 career victories in NCAA Division II women's basketball as he reached the milestone in just 512 games.
>> Became the winningest coach in Washburn women's basketball history on Dec. 18, 2018, when he earned his 432nd victory to surpass the record of his predecessor, Patty Dick (1977-2000).
>> McHenry played basketball and golf at Washburn University, where he graduated in 1984.
>> Brette (Ulsaker) Herber begins her seventh season on the Ichabod bench as an assistant coach. Herber played for McHenry for three seasons (2007-10) and was named the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year as a senior.
>> Erika (Lane) Yoder starts her first season as an assistant coach for Washburn. She also played for McHenry from 2014 to 2017 and was a two-time all-MIAA selection.
2019-20 PRESEASON POLLS
>> Heading into the new season, the Ichabods were picked third in the 2019 MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll with 134 total points and fourth in the media poll, tallying 217 points.
>> Leading the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll was reigning champion Fort Hays State with 10 first-place votes and 166 points. Central Missouri was voted second with four first-place votes and earned 160 points.
>> In the media poll, WU trailed Fort Hays State, Central Missouri, and Pittsburg State.
WASHBURN HISTORY
>> Washburn women's basketball is 930-424-1 (.687) all-time and will commence the 51st year of the program's history.
>> Washburn is sixth all-time in Division II in victories
>> Washburn claimed the 2005 NCAA National Championship over Seattle Pacific with a 70-53 win to cap off a 35-2 season.
>> Washburn has made 17 NCAA Tournament appearances and is 26-16 all-time in those postseason games.
>> The program has won 18 total MIAA Championships, earning nine regular season conference titles and winning nine MIAA Tournament championships.
>> There have been 30 All-American awards given to Washburn players, with 11 of those coming from the WBCA.
>> Washburn has finished 14 seasons with 25 wins and four seasons with 30 victories.
