TOPEKA, Kan. -- The Ichabods will take on a second straight Kansas foe on the road Saturday afternoon as they take on Newman at 1:30 p.m. in Wichita, Kan. to round out the two-week road stand. 

OPENING TIP

• A four-game road trip for Washburn comes to an end with a meeting against Newman. 
• The Ichabods will face the Jets on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 1:30 p.m. inside of Fugate Gymnasium in Wichita, Kan. 
• Washburn is coming off a 18-13 season in 2024-25, finishing 5th in the MIAA regular season with an 11-8 record in the conference play. They advanced to the MIAA Tournament Semifinals. 
• The Ichabods were picked to finish 2nd in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll and were tabbed 3rd by the media.   

BODS AND BITS

• Washburn returns ten letterwinners from last season's roster while adding four total new faces in the form of three transfers and one true freshman.  
• The experienced Ichabod roster consists of four seniors, four juniors, five sophomores and one freshman.  
• As a team Washburn has shooting splits of 41.1% from the floor, 30.7% from deep and 70.8% at the free throw line to score 65.4 ppg. 
• They grab 37.7 rpg with 13.8 apg to 17.6 turnovers per contest. Defensively they average 9.6 spg with 2.8 bpg.  
• On the year opponents are averaging 57.2 ppg while shooting 36.6% from the floor and 26.8% from behind the 3-point line.  
• Washburn is 6-1 on the year inside the new Lee Arena, 3-1 in neutral court games and 2-3 in road contests.  
• Washburn hit three 3-pointers on Thursday against Emporia State, all off the hands of Aniah Wayne, extending its streak with a made 3-pointer to 143 games. 
• Newman fell to 7-9 overall and 1-6 inside the MIAA after losing 64-54 to Central Missouri at home last time out on Jan. 14. 

THE BLUE BUNCH

• Yiibari Nwidadah leads the team scoring 13.3 ppg in just 22.9 mpg on the season. She has started in all 15 games she has played in and leads the team grabbing 7.7 rpg while also shooting 58.8% from the floor, tops on the team as well. She has scored in double figures in ten games with four double-doubles. She is 1st in the MIAA and 10th nationally in field goal percentage while ranking 8th in the MIAA in rpg and 15th in ppg.
• Payton Sterk is second on the team in scoring at 11.7 ppg on 35.5% overall and 33.3% from deep. She has started every game playing 31.1 mpg, most on the team while also coming away with 1.7 spg, second most on the team. She has drilled a team-high 28 triples and has scored 14+ points in seven games this season. The senior ranks 7th in the MIAA in 3-pointers and 8th in steals. 
• Gabi Giovannetti has started all 16 games for Washburn scoring 11.6 ppg on 43.5% shooting in 28.3 mpg of action. She is shooting a team-high 40.6% from deep and is second on the team with 26 3-pointers. She also brings down 4.4 rpg and is making 1.9 spg, most on the team. The Shawnee, Kan. native is 6th in the MIAA in spg and 14th in 3-pointers. 
• Britany Kogbara sits fourth on the team in scoring at 7.8 ppg in just 16.4 mpg of action playing in every game with one start. She is shooting 54.5% from the floor, second best on the team, while grabbing 3.6 rpg. Her five games scoring double figures off the bench lead the team. 
• Madelyn Amekporfor has started every game playing 23.9 mpg and scoring 6.2 ppg while shooting 39.8% from the floor. She is adding 3.2 rpg along with swiping 1.0 spg and swatting away 0.7 bpg.
• Brooke Gomez has played in every game while making 14 starts and is logging 18.3 mpg. She scores 3.4 ppg on 37.7% shooting and is dishing out a team-high 3.1 apg along with grabbing 2.5 rpg. She ranks 8th in the MIAA in assists per game and 7th in assist to turnover ratio.
• Aniah Wayne has come off the bench in every game playing 18.9 mpg. She is scoring 5.9 ppg on 37.2% shooting from the floor. The senior also chips in 2.0 rpg and 1.0 apg. 
• Kellyn Hunter has played in 13 games while making two starts for the Ichabods and is logging 16.7 mpg. She is coming away with 1.0 spgwhile dishing out 2.2 apg and grabbing 2.4 rpg. 
• Nia McKenzie has played 13.4 mpg off the bench in every game. She is scoring 2.3 ppg on 37.5% shooting with 2.8 rpg.
• Kennadi Jackson has come off the bench in 14 games playing 7.2 mpg and scoring 1.0 ppg.
• Willow Gideon has played in eight games logging 4.0 mpg. She is scoring 1.0 ppg.
• Kylin Shipman has appeared in 12 games for the Ichabods of the bench logging 8.3 mpg.
• Lauren Luebbert has come off the bench in ten contests, playing 5.5 mpg and scoring 0.6 ppg.
• Cloie Jansky has appeared in eight games off the bench logging 2.9 mpg and scoring 1.3 ppg. 

STAT STACKING

• Washburn 58th in the nation at protecting the three-point line holding opponents to a 26.8% clip from beyond the arc, second best in the MIAA. 
• Holding opponents to 57.2 ppg overall the Ichabods are 36th nationally and first in the MIAA in scoring defense. 
• With opponents shooting 36.6% from the floor, Washburn is 5th in the conference and 52nd in the nation in field goal percentage defense.
• Forcing 19.44 turnovers per game the Ichabods are second in the conference in 76th in the nation.
• With a +3.7 rebounding margin Washburn is 7th among conference teams and 76th in the nation. 
• Outscoring opponents by 8.3 ppg, the Ichabods have the 79th best scoring margin in the nation and 7th among MIAA teams.

ADVANCED STATS

• Washburn has a team offensive rating of 90.4 and defensive rating of 79.0 based on averages per 100 possessions. 
• Yiibari Nwidadah leads the team among qualified players in rebounding percentage at 19.3%. 
• Britany Kogbara is second on the team grabbing 12.4% of rebounds when on the floor, second highest on the team. 
• Brooke Gomez has the highest assist percentage on the team at 32.1% of assists while on the floor. 
• Kellyn Hunter has the second highest mark at 23.0%. 
• Yiibari Nwidadah has the highest true shooting percentage on the team at 62.3% when adding in free throw percentage and 3-pointers. 
• Britany Kogbara is second on the team at 55.8%. 

MILESTONE MARKERS

• With 272 career offensive rebounds Yiibari Nwidadah is 3rd in program history at creating extra opportunities. In overall rebounding she is tied for sixth with 739 career boards. 
• Her career field goal percentage of .582 is the 2nd best in program history. In scoring she ranks 13th among all Ichabods with 1,192 career points. 
• Nwidadah is also 11th in program history with 69 career blocked shots. 
• Gabi Giovannetti is 8th in program history with 138 career 3-pointers made. She is tied for 19th among all Ichabods with 55 blocked shots. 
• Payton Sterk currently sits 18th in program history with 90 3-pointers made in just 47 career games with Washburn. Her career percentage from deep of 36.4% is 14th in program history.
• With 55 career blocked shots Madelyn Amekporfor is tied for 19th in program history. 

HEAD COACH LORA WESTLING

• Lora Westling is in her fourth season as head coach at her alma mater entering the 2025-26 season. She has a 53-51 record with Washburn and is 130-129 mark  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 Katie Dalton and Robin Stahl along with student assistant Karly Neufeld complete out the coaching staff.
• Dalton enters her second year on the Washburn sideline in 2025-26. After moving to Topeka she reunited 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.
• Robin Stahl joins the Ichabod staff in 2025-26 after a one-year stop at Ottawa University where she was an assistant coach with the women's program. Before that she spent one season as a graduate assistant at Central Missouri. 
• Stahl is an Alliance, Ohio native who began her career at Malone University where spent four years with career averages of 13.5 ppg and 3.6 apg. She graduated from Malone in 2022. She played one season at Central Missouri before moving into a GA position. 
• Karly Neufeld is back for a second season as a student assistant in the 2025-26 season. 

LAST TIME OUT

Washburn 63, Emporia State 52 (January 15, 2026)
EMPORIA, Kan. -- Washburn snapped a two-game losing skid on Thursday evening pulling away in the second half to defeat Emporia State for the second time in 2026, 63-52. The Ichabods will face Newman on the road Saturday at 1:30 p.m. in Wichita.  

A pair of baskets early on by Madelyn Amekporfor put Washburn (11-5, 4-3 MIAA) in front early. The Lady Hornets (8-8, 2-5 MIAA) knocked down a few jumpers to go in front 10-9 with 5:13 remaining. That would be the last points of the quarter for Emporia State as they were held to 33.3% shooting in the quarter. Over the last five minutes the Ichabods built a 14-10 lead.  

The first points for either team in the second quarter came from Brooke Gomez with 6:44 to play in the half. Aniah Wayne knocked down a triple shortly after, pushing the lead to nine. Washburn shot over 50.0% in the quarter to lead 28-21 at the break.  

Out of the half Wayne hit a layup at the 7:39 mark to make it a double-figure lead for the first time in the game. The Lady Hornets brought the lead back down to eight before the Ichabods answered with a 8-0 run started by a basket from Yiibari Nwidadah. The lead remained at 16 with a last second layup from Britany Kogbara to end the quarter.  

Neither team scored for the first 3:36 of the fourth until Nwidadah sank another layup that began a 7-0 run to start the quarter and push the lead over 20. The early offense in the quarter put the game away for Washburn as the Lady Hornets never got within single-digits the rest of the way and the Ichabods completed the regular season series sweep winning 63-52.  

Washburn was consistent throughout shooting 42.6% overall while going 3-10 from deep. On the other end Emporia State was held to 32.3% shooting and just 3-6 at the free throw line.  

The rebounding battle was won by 45-34 by the Ichabods, helping lead to a 44-22 advantage in paint scoring. Washburn's bench provided 36 points to just 25 for the Lady Hornet reserves.  

Aniah Wayne came off the bench to lead the way in scoring with 17 points going 6-9 from the field with all three Ichabod triples. Yiibari Nwidadah provided 13 points on 6-10 shooting with seven rebounds. Gabi Giovannetti had a team-high 10 boards along with three steals and three assists.  

Kaitlyn Sanders led Emporia State with 12 points, Makenzie McDaniel had 10.  

ABOUT THE NEWMAN JETS

• Newman lost its fifth straight game 64-54 to Central Missouri last time out on Jan. 14 in Wichita. They fell to 7-9 overall and 1-6 inside the MIAA. 
• The Jets are 6-5 inside of Fugate Gymnasium, 1-2 on the road and 0-2 in neutral court meetings. 
• Last season Newman went 7-21 overall and 2-17 in MIAA play, missing out on the MIAA Tournament. 
• On the year the Jets average 67.2 ppg with shooting splits of 37.8% from the floor, 29.3% from deep and 70.6% at the line. They also grab 37.1 rpg with 13.4 apg. Opponents are scoring 65.2 ppg on 38.6% shooting. 
• Newman is 1st in the MIAA and 17th in the country averaging just 13.6 turnovers per game. They also lead the conference in bench scoring at 31.2 ppg, 15th most nationally. 
• Jaeden McMillin leads the team in scoring at 16.1 ppg on a team-high 44.2% shooting while starting in 14 games. She also grabs a team-high 5.9 rpg and makes 1.3 spg. She is 5th in the MIAA in ppg and 8th in FG%. 
• Alexis Martin is second on the team in scoring at 10.6 ppg playing 18.3 mpg off the bench in every game. She also grabs 3.4 rpg and shoots 34.8% from three-point range with a team-high 32 makes. She ranks 4th in the MIAA in percentage from deep and triples per game. 
• Paige Craft is scoring 8.8 ppg at the guard spot shooting 39.5% from the floor. She has started all 14 games she has played and averages a team-high 2.7 apg. 
• Valeriya Lioukina is scoring 6.0 ppg on 38.3% shooting while starting all 16 games. She is grabbing 5.4 rpg and giving out 1.4 apg. 
• Carli Carlson chips in 5.3 ppg along with 3.3 rpg and 1.5 apg this season in 15.3 mpg. 

HEAD COACH AMY BRIGGS

• Is in her third season as the head coach at Newman. 
• Prior to joining the Jets, Briggs spent the last three seasons at Truman State where she was an assistant for two seasons before being promoted to Associate Head Coach before the 2022-23 season.
• Prior to Truman, Briggs spent four seasons at Central College, the Dutch increased their win total every year. She began her coaching career at Missouri Valley College as a graduate assistant.
• Briggs began her playing career at Johnson County (Kan.) Community College where she appeared in 2 NJCAA Division II Championship tournaments and earned All-American status. She then took her talents to Truman State. Briggs earned first team All-GLVC and earned All-GLVC tournament team
• Kansas native, earned all-state and all-metro honors at Lansing High School.

LAST TIME VERSUS NEWMAN

Washburn 77, Newman 66  (January 18, 2025)
TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn used a 30-point third quarter to overcome a halftime deficit and fly past Newman 77-66 on Saturday afternoon in Lee Arena. The Ichabods will head back out on the road next week taking on Northwest Missouri State at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 22.  

The Jets (6-11, 1-7 MIAA) got out to a fast start with a pair of 3-pointers to build a 10-3 lead at the 5:20 mark in the first quarter. Washburn (10-8, 4-4 MIAA) scored the next five points, but Newman remained in front the whole quarter. Payton Sterk got a driving layup to go on the final possession of the half to make it just a one-point lead at 18-17 after one.  

Amaya Davison began the second quarter with a driving layup to give Washburn its first lead of the game. After two free throws from Nia McKenzie they led 25-20 with 7:40 left in the half. From that point the Jets scored the next seven points to regain the lead. Washburn was able to get to the line, making eight free throws in the quarter, but shot just 3-12 from the field as Newman ended the half with a 3-pointer to lead 34-31.  

A bucket from Yiibari Nwidadah and a 3-pointer by Payton Sterk tied the game up for the Ichabods in the opening minutes of the third quarter. They took the lead at 45-44 after Nwidadah got a tip to go, Gabi Giovannetti followed with a 3-pointer which was part of a 16-3 run for the Ichabods, going up double-digits with 2:09 to play in the quarter after Nwidadah got another layup to go. The lead remained in double figures at 11 points heading to the fourth as Washburn shot 8-12 from the floor in the quarter.  

The Ichabod offense continued to churn to begin the fourth quarter, pushing the lead to 18 points after an 8-0 run capped off by a layup from Davison. The Jets responded with eight straight of their own but were unable to cut the deficit below 10 as Washburn held on for its tenth win of the season, 77-66.  

From the field the Ichabods shot 22-47 (42.6%) while holding Newman to 22-62 (35.5%), but it was at the line that Washburn created an advantage as they shot 32-44 from the charity stripe to just 13-19 for the visitors.  

A 40-32 rebounding advantage went in the Ichabods favor, leading to a 30-24 advantage in points in the paint. Both sides were near even in assists with 11 for Washburn and eight for the Jets.  

Yiibari Nwidadah had a game-high 22 points on 7-10 shooting with eight rebounds. Gabi Giovannetti scored 18 points on 4-5 shooting and 8-8 at the free throw line while also snagging two steals. Payton Sterk chipped in nine points.  

Newman had four score in double figures led by Jaeden McMillin with 15 and Valeriya Lioukina with 14.  

SERIES WITH NEWMAN

• Washburn leads the all-time series with Newman 13-5.
• The Ichabods are 4-2 against the Jets in Wichita. 
• The series began on Dec. 9, 1975 with a 61-52 win for Washburn on the road. 
• The Ichabods have won the last two meetings between the two teams including a 77-66 win at home in the only meeting between the two teams last season. 
• Washburn averages 63.94 ppg all-time against Newman. 

WASHBURN HISTORY

• Washburn women's basketball is 1,024-512-1 (.666) all-time and are in the 57th 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 return home for the first time in two weeks facing Northwest Missouri State on Wednesday, Jan. 21 with tip-off at 5:30 p.m.
• Senior night for the Ichabods will be in the regular season finale on Feb. 28 against Missouri Southern at 3 p.m.
• The MIAA Basketball Championship Tournament will be held in Kansas City, Mo. at the Municipal Auditorium from March 3-8.