TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn women's basketball stays on the road to begin the season taking on William Jewell at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 19 inside the Mabee Center. 

OPENING TIP

• Washburn women's basketball returns from tournament play and will face a more familiar opponent as they travel to take on William Jewell. 
• The Ichabods will take on the Cardinals at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 19 inside the Mabee Center. 
• Washburn is 0-4 on the year after falling 70-67 to Quincy in the final game of the Quincy Classic on Saturday, Nov. 16. 
• They are coming off a 13-16 season in 2023-24, finishing 10th in the MIAA with an 8-14 record in the conference and advancing to the first round of the MIAA Tournament.
• The Ichabods were picked to finish 9th in the MIAA Preseason Media Poll and were tabbed 10th by the coaches.  
• William Jewell will enter Tuesday's contest 1-1 on the year after falling 68-52 to fellow MIAA member Newman on Wednesday, Nov. 13 in Wichita.

BODS AND BITS

• Washburn returns eight letterwinners from last season's roster while adding seven total new faces with five incoming freshmen and two junior transfers rounding out the 15-player roster. 
• The five freshmen are flanked by four sophomores and a junior class that is six players deep. It is the first roster without a senior going back to the 1980's. 
• The Ichabods are scoring 68.3 ppg on 40.8% shooting overall and 25.3% from behind the arc.
• Opponents average 75.8 ppg on 45.9% shooting and 29.0% from deep.
• They are grabbing 33.8 rpg while giving out 13.3 apg. On the defensive end they come away with 8.5 spg and swat away 4.8 bpg.
• Washburn is 0-2 in both neutral and road games while not having played a game inside of Lee Arena this season. 
• Washburn hit at least one 3-pointer in both games of the Quincy Classic to extend their streak of games with a made triple to 102 games.
• The Ichabods made nine blocks against McKendree on Friday night, the most as a team in a game under Lora Westling. 
• The matchup with William Jewell will be the 11th meeting all-time between the two programs. 

BLUE REPORT

• Yiibari Nwidadah leads the team offensively with 19.3 ppg while also shooting a team-high 69.4% from the field. She grabs a team-best 7.3 rpg and swats away 1.8 bpg while snagging 1.3 spg. The junior has started all four games playing 30.3 mpg. She currently leads all MIAA players in ppg and field goal percentage, while ranking second in blocks per game. She is 10th nationally in fg% and 34th in scoring. Against Quincy she scored a career-high 29 points on 12-16 shooting while also making a career-high four blocks. 
• Payton Sterk is second on the team in scoring at 12.0 ppg while starting all four contests and playing a team-high 30.8 mpg. She is shooting 37.5% from the floor and 27.8% from deep while dishing out 3.3 apg, most on the squad. She is 12th in the MIAA in assists per game. 
• Gabi Giovannetti is scoring 11.3 ppg while shooting 38.3% from the floor and 100.0% at the free throw line. The junior has started all four games playing 29.0 mpg. She is adding 2.5 rpg with 2..0 apg, 1.5 spg and 1.3 bpg. Against McKendree she was everywhere on the defensive end making three blocks and coming away with four steals while scoring 19 points. 
• Madelyn Amekporfor is scoring 8.3 ppg on 44.0% shooting while starting in all four games and playing 27.3 mpg. She is grabbing 2.8 rpg with 1.8 apg and on the defensive end making 1.0 spg and 0.8 bpg. Against Mckendree she scored a career-high 16 points while also dishing out a career-high four assists. 
• Aniah Wayne is scoring 8.5 ppg while shooting 35.7% from the floor and 33.3% from deep and is tied for the team-lead with six made triples. She has came off the bench in all four games averaging 21.3 mpg and adds 4.0 rpg with 1.5 spg. 
• Brooke Gomez has started the last three games and played in all four averaging 20.5 mpg. She chips in 4.8 ppg on 37.5% shooting from deep, a team-high, and grabs 2.5 rpg with 1.3 apg. 
• Rebecca Snyder has came off the bench in all four games playing 10.8 mpg and is coring 1.8 ppg with 3.3 rpg. 
• Amaya Davison has played in all four games and started one logging 14.5 mpg. She is giving out 1.5 apg and coming away with 1.5 spg. 
• Nia McKenzie has played in all four games averaging 7.3 mpg off the bench. 
• Emajin McCallop has played in two games scoring 2.0 ppg across 5.5 mpg. 
• Liz Boyd, Lauren Luebbert and Willow Gideon have each played less than 5.0 mpg off the bench. 

STAT STACKING

• Washburn is protecting the paint ranking 25th in the nation averaging 4.8 bpg. The mark is good for third among MIAA teams. 
• The Ichabods are crashing the offensive glass ranking fourth in the MIAA with 13.8 extra opportunities per game, 84th best in the nation.
• Washburn averages 8.5 spg, fifth most in the MIAA. 
• Defensively, the Ichabods are creating havoc as they are fifth among conference teams forcing 17.50 turnovers per game. 

MILESTONE MARKERS

• With 163 career offensive rebounds Yiibari Nwidadah is 11th in program history. She is five rebounds away from moving up to No. 10. In overall rebounds she ranks 38th in Washburn history with 420. 
• Her career rebounding average of 7.5 rpg is sixth highest in program history. With an average of 2.9 orpg she has the second highest offensive average of any Ichabod. 
• Gabi Giovannetti is 29th in program history with 71 career 3-pointers made. She will move up to 27th with two more triples. 

HEAD COACH LORA WESTLING

• Lora Westling is in her third season as head coach at her alma mater entering the 2024-25 season. She has a 24-37 record with Washburn and is 101-115 at the DII level. 
• Westling comes back to Topeka after six seasons at Western Colorado, where she compiled a record of 77-78 and led the team to back-to-back NCAA Tournament selections – the first two in program history.
• Her overall victories is second on the Western all-time list and her 63 RMAC wins is tied for second in program history.
• Prior to Western Colorado, Westling spent three seasons as the head coach at the Division III program, Illinois College.
• Before becoming a head coach Westling had stints as an assistant at Missouri-St. Louis from 2007-10 and Truman State from 2010-13.
• She got her start in coaching at Washburn, where she served as a graduate assistant for the women's basketball and women's soccer teams.
• Westling was a standout member of Washburn's women's basketball team from 2001-05 and helped the Lady Blues to the school's first NCAA Division II national championship in 2005. 
• She also played one season of soccer for the Lady Blues.

WASHBURN ASSISTANT COACHES

• Assistant coaches Matt Barreiro and Katie Dalton along with student assistant Karly Neufeld round out the coaching staff.
• Barriero enters his second year on the staff. He is a 2005 graduate of Arizona Christian and got his masters from Walden University in 2012. He played basketball at both Washington State and Arizona Christian.  
• He has several years of head coaching experience with seven years at the helm at The King's University in Canada and most recently as the head coach at Central Christian College in McPherson, Kan. for two years.
• Dalton joins the staff for the 2024-25 season. She reunites with Westling who she played for at Western Colorado from 2017-22 and was a two-time All-RMAC selection. She graduated from Western Colorado in 2022. 
• She is originally from Magnolia, Texas and has spent time as a head rehabilitation technician and a physical therapy technician.
• Karly Neufeld joins the coaching staff after spending the 2023-24 season on the Ichabod roster.  

LAST TIME OUT

Quincy 70, Washburn 67 (November 16, 2024)
QUINCY, Il. -- Washburn women's basketball fell just short of picking up its first win on Saturday afternoon, falling 70-67 to Quincy in the final game of the Quincy Classic. The Ichabods will stay on the road to face William Jewell on Tuesday, Nov. 19 with tip-off set for 5:30 p.m.  

After creating a 5-2 lead early, Washburn (0-4) rode the hot hand of Yiibari Nwidadah in the first quarter as she scored 10 straight points for the Ichabods to put them ahead 15-8 with 3:58 left in the frame. The lead grew to double figures after Madelyn Amekporfor went 2-2 at the line at the 1:15 mark. The Hawks (3-1) offense got going as they cut the lead to eight, ending the quarter down 25-17.  

Quincy scored the first four points of the second quarter and picked up the aggressiveness offensively. They went 8-10 at the free throw line in the second quarter alone after not shooting from the charity stripe in the first. After Washburn shot 50.0% from the floor in the first quarter they were held to 5-17 shooting (29.4%) in the second. The Hawks went from down seven to up by three at 31-28 with 4:24 left in the half. The Ichabods finished the half strong, beginning with a triple by Brooke Gomez to break a 32-32 tie and spark a 10-4 run to end the half leading 42-36.  

Both sides traded baskets coming out of the half. After the lead had gone down to four a 3-pointer by Payton Sterk and free throw by Amekporfor put it back up to eight at the 4:54 mark. Each team struggled to score as both shot under 30.0% from the floor. A second chance opportunity by Nwidadah extended Washburn's lead from the quarter's beginning as it ended 53-46.  

Another long ball from Sterk began the fourth quarter and made it a 10-point game. After another Nwidadah basket at the 6:34 mark to put the Ichabods up by eight the next seven points came from Quincy. Shortly after, another seven-point run would put them up by four. Gomez and Nwidadah came through with baskets in the final 125 seconds that would tie the game at the 40-second mark. Washburn was unable to turn over the Hawks and the home squad was true at the free throw line, putting the game away for a 70-67 win.  

After a hot start shooting the Ichabods finished 23-66 (34.8%) from the floor but were 17-22 (77.3%) from the line. Quincy finished strong to shoot 26-62 (41.9%) for the game.  

Extra opportunities were the key for the Hawks as they won the rebounding battle 50-34. It was partially offset by Washburn turning them over 19 times while only registering 15 giveaways themselves, but it was not enough.  

Yiibari Nwidadah set a new career-high with 29 points on 12-16 shooting while grabbing eight rebounds and recording a career-high four blocks. Madelyn Amekporfor had nine points to go along with three rebounds while Brooke Gomez and Payton Sterk each had eight.  

Nicole McDermott scored 25 points on 7-13 shooting and 10-10 at the line to pace Quincy. Acheampomaa Danso had a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards as well.  

Yiibari Nwidadah was named to the All-Tournament Team at the conclusion of the event.  

ABOUT THE WILLIAM JEWELL CARDINALS

• William Jewell is 1-1 to begin the year after suffering its first loss to Newman on the road on Nov. 13, falling 68-52.
• The Cardinals went 6-22 overall and 4-18 inside the GLVC last year, missing out on the conferenc tournament. 
• William Jewell is 1-0 inside the Mabee Center and is 0-1 on the road. 
• The Cardinals average 59.5 ppg on 32.8% shooting while allowing 60.0 ppg to opponents. They pull down 35.5 rpg while dishing out 10.0 apg. 
• They are one of the top teams at protecting the ball, giving up just 10.0 turnovers per game, 2nd least in the nation. They are 21st nationally in free throw attempts per game, first among GLVC teams.
• Ayden Shannon leads the team averaging 18.0 ppg on 46.2% shooting and 57.1% from beyond the arc. She adds 3.0 rpg, 2.5 apg and 1.5 spg. She has started both games playing a team-high 29.0 mpg. She is 5th in the GLVC in ppg and second in three-point percentage. 
• Bree Shannon is second on the team in scoring at 6.5 ppg while starting both games and playing 26.5 mpg. She is shooting 33.3% from the field and 60.0% from deep on the year. From the guard position she grabs 5.5 rpg, tied for the team lead, and snags 1.5 spg.
• Paris Opelt is chipping in 6.0 ppg on 28.6% shooting while playing 22.0 mpg off the bench. She grabs 4.0 rpg and swats 1.5 bpg, fourth most in the GLVC.
• Kate Hillyer is grabbing 5.5 rpg, tied for a team high while adding 5.0 ppg and giving out 1.5 apg. 
• Karlee Holland is scoring 6.0 ppg in just 15.5 mpg off the bench in both games. She also makes 1.5 spg. 

HEAD COACH KYLEY BACHAND

• Is in her second season as the head coach of William Jewell where she has a 7-23 record. 
• Spent two seasons at Colorado State University, going 41-24 with an appearance in the WNIT
• Served as an assistant coach at Sioux Falls in 2016-17 helping the Cougars go 22-8  
• Earned a bachelor's degree in communication from Illinois in 2015 followed by a master's in recreation, sport and tourism the following year

LAST TIME VERSUS WILLIAM JEWELL

Washburn  86, William Jewell 66 (November 21, 2023)
TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn reached the 80-point mark in a third straight game on Tuesday night in a 86-66 win over William Jewell in the 2023-24 home opener. The Ichabods stay in Topeka for one more game hosting Barclay College at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 25.  

Washburn (4-1) led wire-to-wire in its fourth straight victory with back-to-back buckets by Liz Boyd off the bench putting the Ichabods up 10-5 with 5:14 in the first. Amaya Davison ended the quarter with a pair of baskets to make it 19-13 over the Cardinals (1-4) after one.  

After a slow offensive start Washburn picked up the pace in the second quarter shooting 76.9% from the floor going 3-4 from behind the line and 5-6 from the charity stripe. The lead grew to double digits at the 7:28 mark after a 3-pointer by Gabi Giovannetti. The triple was part of a 17-0 run which began with a triple by Aubree Dewey and was capped off by another basket by Giovannetti to make the game 40-19. Yiibari Nwidadah was able to get a bucket inside the paint with 2:07 to extend the lead up to 24 points before the Ichabods went into the half leading 47-27.  

William Jewell had its highest scoring quarter of the game in the third quarter notching 21 points and going 11-12 at the line. Washburn was able to keep pace shooting 47.5% in the quarter and only committing one turnover in the frame. Another triple by Giovannetti put the lead at the quarter century mark before the Cardinals ended the quarter with the final two baskets.  

The Ichabods didn't score until the 7:49 mark of the final quarter but still led by 21 after Davison delivered the first bucket. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Dewey made it a 77-52 game with 6:16 left. William Jewell was able to cut the lead down to 16 with 2:42 remaining but a Mackenzie Gamble 3-pointer and two layups were able to salt the game away for Washburn to win 86-66.  

Dewey led the Ichabods with a career-high 23 points on 9-15 shooting, she also tossed out eight assists reaching the eight-assist mark for a third straight game. Yiibari Nwidadah notched her third double-double of the season with 13 points on 6-11 shooting and adding 15 rebounds. Gabi Giovannetti scored 17 points off the bench going 5-8 from behind the arc.  

Washburn shot 47.9% from the floor and went 10-22 (45.5%) from deep while holding the Cardinals to 32.8% shooting. The Ichabods controlled the glass, pulling down 50 boards while William Jewell grabbed just 31. The extra opportunities led to a 46-16 points in the paint advantage.  

Emree Zars led three Cardinals finishing in double-figures with 15 points and grabbed six rebounds.  

SERIES WITH WILLIAM JEWELL

• Washburn is 10-0 in the all-time series with the Cardinals 
• All 10 contests have been played either inside Lee Arena or the Mabee Center with the Ichabods 5-0 in each venue. 
• Last season Washburn won an 86-66 home game over William Jewell on Nov. 21. 
• Aubree Dewey led the way with 23 points and eight assists while Yiibari Nwidadah had 13 points and 15 rebounds.

WASHBURN HISTORY

• Washburn women's basketball is 995-498-1 (.666) all-time and are in the 56th year of the program's history.
• 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.

LOOKING AHEAD

• Washburn will continue non-conference touring the Show Me State against Truman State University on Friday, Nov. 22 at 11 a.m. 
• The Ichabods will play inside Lee Arena for the first time at 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 25 against Lincoln University. 
• MIAA play begins on the road against Nebraska Kearney on Dec. 5 at 5:30 p.m. 
• The MIAA Basketball Championship Tournament will be held in Kansas City, Mo. at the Municipal Auditorium from March 5-9.