OPENING TIP
>> The Ichabods begin conference play on the road this week at Pittsburg State (Dec. 5) and Missouri Southern (Dec. 7).
>> Tip-off against the Gorillas is slated for 5:30 on Thursday and the Ichabods will face the Lions at 1:30 on Saturday.
>> Washburn is coming off a 60-52 non-conference loss at Emporia State on Nov. 29, to make its record 3-3 on the season.
>> Pittsburg State and Missouri Southern played each other on Tuesday, Dec. 3, to open their conference schedule. The Gorillas improved to 3-3 with the 68-49 win over the Lions, who fell to 2-6.
>> The Ichabods were picked third in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll with Pittsburg State right behind in fourth and Missouri Southern checking in at ninth on the list.
>> WU defeated both PSU and MSSU on the road last season.
WASHBURN NOTES
>> The Ichabods went 14-5 in MIAA games last season and finished fourth in the conference standings.
>> This season, Washburn is averaging 76.3 ppg and holding its opponents to 67.8 ppg.
>> Hunter Bentley played all 40 minutes against Emporia State last week and led the team in scoring and rebounding (20 points, eight rebounds).
>> She is now the team leader in scoring with 13.7 ppg as well as the top-rebounder averaging 7.7 boards per game.
>> Reagan Phelan (13.5) and Shelbe Piggie (12.7) are also averaging double-figures in points per game.
>> Phelan has the highest three-point field goal percentage in the MIAA with 46.9% (15-of-32).
>> She has also recorded the most assists in the conference with 29 (4.8 apg). Phelan handed out six assists against the Lady Hornets.
>> The Ichabods have out-rebounded their opponents 241-194 this season.
>> Mia Castaneda and Abby Oliver have combined for 99 points off of the bench.
>> Oliver has helped boost the team's rebounding numbers by grabbing 33 rebounds, 19 of which have been offensive.
ABOUT THE PITTSBURG STATE GORILLAS
>> The Pittsburg State Gorillas are 3-3 (1-0 MIAA) after posting a 68-49 road win at Missouri Southern in the conference opener.
>> The Gorillas boast the highest scoring average in the MIAA at 82.8 ppg while limiting their opponents to a 71.3 ppg mark.
>> They also have the third-best field goal percentage in the conference with a .446 percent clip.
>> Tristan Gregg leads the offensive charge for the Gorillas with a league-leading 22.2 ppg.
>> She also leads the team in three-pointers with 18 on 44 attempts for a .409 percentage, which is third-highest in the MIAA.
>> Athena Alvarado (16.5 ppg), Maya Williams (14.7 ppg), and Kaylee DaMitz (10.8 ppg) are also averaging double-figures in scoring.
>> Alvarado has pulled down 57 rebounds for the Gorillas for the fourth-highest average in the MIAA at 9.5 rpg.
>> When DaMitz isn't scoring herself, she's helping the team get the basket as she has dished out 28 assists (4.7 apg) and has the best assist/turnover ratio in the conference (3.1)
HEAD COACH AMANDA DAVIED
>> Amanda Davied is in her second season as the head coach of the Gorillas.
>> Prior to earning the head coaching position, Davied was an assistant coach for her alma mater Pittsburg State for 14 seasons.
>> She began her coaching career as a graduate assistant for PSU after being a three-time all-MIAA awardwinner for the Gorillas as a player.
SERIES WITH PITTSBURG STATE
>> The Ichabods hold a 53-33 series advantage over the Gorillas and are 21-19 when playing in Pittsburg, Kan.
>> The Ichabods captured a 70-66 decision over the Gorillas in the last meeting on January 26, 2019.
>> Phelan knocked down 18 points and dished out four assists and made two steals.
ABOUT THE MISSOURI SOUTHERN LIONS
>> The Missouri Southern Lions are 2-6 (0-1 MIAA) and are coming off a 68-49 home loss to Pittsburg State.
>> Three of their losses have been by five or fewer points.
>> The Lions are averaging 70.5 ppg, 40.5 rpg, and have out blocked their opponents so far this season by 35 blocks as the team is averaging 6.9 bpg.
>> Three Lions are averaging double-figure points, paced by Chasidee Owens who is fifth in the MIAA with a 17.1 ppg average.
>> Destiny Cozart is shooting .549 and averaging 14.8 ppg and leads the team in three-point shots as she has converted on 22 of 68 attempts from deep.
>> Amber Burch has dished out 28 assists (3.5 apg),
>> Zoe Campbell has been a defensive power for the Lions as she leads the league in blocked shots with 31 total and is averaging 3.9 bpg, which is two more than the conference player with the second-highest blocks per game.
>> Campbell also has the sixth-highest rebound average in the MIAA with 8.9 boards per game.
HEAD COACH RONNIE RESSEL
>> Ronnie Ressel is in his third season at the helm of the Lions' bench and has compiled a record of 23-34.
>> He has been a part of the Missouri Southern athletic department for 17 seasons, serving as an assistant for both the men's and women's programs.
>> Prior to joining the Missouri Southern coaching staff, he was the head coach at Rend Lake College and was named the Great Rivers Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1996.
>> Ressel was a two-time letterwinner for Missouri Southern and led the team in assists both seasons.
SERIES WITH MISSOURI SOUTHERN
>> The Ichabods lead the all-time series against the Lions, 49-29, and have won the last three-straight meetings.
>> Washburn is 18-7 when playing on Missouri Southern's court, including the past two wins.
>> WU won by a 31 point margin on January 23, 2019, as it cruised to a 90-59 victory.
>> Four Ichabods finished in double-digit scoring with Taylor Blue and Reagan Phelan totaling 22 and 20 points, respectively.
LAST TIME OUT FOR MISSOURI SOUTHERN (Dec. 3, 2019)
PITTSBURG STATE 68 (3-3, 1-0 MIAA)
MISSOURI SOUTHERN 49 (2-6, 0-1 MIAA)
Joplin, Mo. – Zoe Campbell moved up the career block list, but big first and fourth quarters helped lift the Pittsburg State Gorillas over the Missouri Southern women's basketball team 68-49 tonight on Robert Corn Court inside the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center.
Southern (2-6, 0-1 MIAA) was led by Chasidee Owens with 18 points and seven rebounds, going 7-of-11 from the free throw line. Campbell had eight points, eight rebounds and three blocks. The three blocks give her 82 in her career, tying her with Anita (Rank) Oplotnik for third-most all-time in MSSU career history.
Destiny Cozart had seven points, while Brooke Stauffer and Morgan Brightwell scored five each.
Pitt (3-3, 1-0 MIAA) had four score in double-figures, led by 18 points from Kaylee DaMitz.
A pair of free throws from Madi Stokes with 4:19 left in the 1st quarter cut the PSU lead to just four (10-6), but the Gorillas closed the quarter on an 8-0 run to lead 18-6 after one.
A three-point play from Cozart and a three from Owens, the latter coming with 7:51 left in the 2nd quarter cut the lead back to six (20-14) for the Gorillas, but a 6-0 run for PSU pushed the score to 26-14 with seven minutes to go.
The Lions closed the half on a 6-4 run and trailed by eight (30-22) going into the locker room.
Southern got within six (30-24) after Campbell hit a layup for the first points of the half, but a 6-0 run for the Gorillas pushed the lead to 12 (36-24) and forced a Lions' timeout.
A pair of free throws from Owens with 4:18 on the clock got the Lions within seven (36-29), but an 8-3 run from the Gorillas pushed the lead to 13 (44-31) and forced a Southern timeout. A three from Stauffer cut the lead to 12 (59-47) with 2:37 left, but that would be as close as the Lions would get.
Southern shot 75 percent from the free throw line, but the Lions were out rebounded by the Gorillas 57-34. The Lions' bench outscored the Gorillas, 14-13.
LAST TIME OUT FOR WASHBURN (Nov. 29, 2019)
WASHBURN 52 (3-3)
EMPORIA STATE 60 (5-2)
EMPORIA, Kan. -- After a slow start, the Washburn women's basketball team had a two point lead early in the fourth quarter, but Emporia State pulled away to win the non-conference game, 60-52, Friday evening. With the loss, the Ichabods drop to 3-3 while the Lady Hornets improve to 5-2 on the season.
Both teams started out slow to start the game as the Lady Hornets held a 9-8 advantage at the end of the opening quarter. The Ichabods remained sluggish in the second quarter going 4-of-12 (33.3%) from the field while the Lady Hornets went 7-of-15 (46.7%). Hunter Bentley hit a shot from behind the arc as time expired in the second quarter to make the Lady Hornets' lead just six at 24-18. Bentley scored seven of the Ichabods' 10 points in the second period.
Emporia State made the first eight points of the second half to go up by double-digits, 32-18. Trailing 35-23 with 3:48 left in the third quarter, Bentley sparked a 7-0 scoring run with a pair of free throws followed by a three-point shot by Mia Castaneda and a layup by Abby Oliver to get Washburn within five, 35-30. The Ichabods ended the frame on a 6-0 scoring to make it a one point affair, 37-36, after a pair of made free throws by Reagan Phelan.
Just 10 seconds into the fourth quarter, Irene Sanz buried a triple to give Washburn its first lead (39-37) since the first points of the game. The Lady Hornets answered with back-to-back made jumpers to go up 41-39. Oliver made another crucial layup to tie up the game at the 8:15 mark, but Emporia State rattled off six-straight points to retake a lead it wouldn't give up again. The Lady Hornets went up by a dozen, 57-45, with 3:26 left before the Ichabods went on a 7-2 run to cut the lead down to single-digits, 59-52. Emporia State added one last free throw with 32 seconds left to make the final score 60-52.
The Ichabods finished the game 17-of-52 (32.7%) from the floor while the Lady Hornets were 23-of-63 (36.5%). Washburn made more three-point shots, going 7-of-28 from distance and Emporia State was 5-of-21. Both teams pulled down 37 rebounds.
Bentley played all 40 minutes and led the Ichabods in scoring and rebounds with 20 points and eight boards. She was a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe. Shelbe Piggie added nine points and had one steal. Castaneda and Oliver contributed eight points apiece. Oliver was 4-of-6 shooting from the field and pulled down five rebounds.
WASHBURN COACHES
>> McHenry is in his 20th season at Washburn and holds an overall record of 449-143 (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 is in 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 is in 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.
WASHBURN HISTORY
>> Washburn women's basketball is 930-426-1 (.687) all-time and is in the 51st season of the program's history.
>> Washburn is tied for seventh 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.
