Valparaiso (2-12, 0-1 Horizon)
at Oakland (6-9, 1-1 Horizon)
Game #15 - Wednesday, January 15 - 6 p.m.
Athletics Center O’Rena (3,000) -
Rochester, Mich.
Next Up in Crusader Basketball: Valpo will get its first conference road test when it heads to Michigan to take on the Oakland Golden Grizzlies. The Crusaders and Oakland battled for eight seasons while the two schools resided in the Mid-Continent Conference from 2000-2007. The rivalry reignites Wednesday night at the Athletics Center O’Rena in Rochester.
Last Time Out: Youngstown State defeated the Crusaders 62-49 in the Horizon League opener for both teams. The Brown and Gold went nearly nine minutes without scoring while the Penguins extended their second half lead to a comfortable double-digit margin. Sharon Karungi led all scorers with 21 points, but YSU’s Heidi Schlegel put up an impressive 19-point, 19-rebound evening. Though she shot just 4-of-16 from the field, Schlegel was 10-for-11 from the foul line. Freshman Aliyah Isaac contributed nine points in seven minutes off the bench.
Following the Crusaders: Audio - WVUR (95.1 FM, Valparaiso) - Joey Basil (play-by-play) and Brandon Vickrey (color). Video - Horizon League Network
Links for the audio and live stats will be available at ValpoAthletics.com. In addition, ValpoGameday.com is a one-stop shop for live video, stats and social media interaction, all on the same page.
Head Coach Tracey Dorow: Tracey Dorow (13-32) is in her second season at the helm of the Valparaiso women’s basketball program in 2013-14. In her first season, Dorow led the Crusaders to eleven victories overall, including five in Horizon League play. Dorow arrived in Valparaiso after 14 seasons at Ferris State. She compiled a 232-163 record while with the Bulldogs. Furthermore, Ferris State posted the #1 grade point average in all of Division II for the 1999-2000 women’s basketball season as well as the #2 ranking in 2002-2003.
Series Notes: Dating back to the days of their Mid-Con duels, Oakland leads the all-time series 13-9 versus Valparaiso. Wednesday night’s contest will be the first meeting between these two teams since Feb. 10th, 2007. While the Golden Grizzlies have won three straight over Valpo, the Crusaders have won three of the last four matchups at the Athletics Center O’Rena.
Storylines...
- 2,531 days have passed since the former Mid-Con rivals have duked it out on the court.
- Valpo and Oakland met in the Mid-Con Conference Tourney in four straight seasons (2000-2003).
- Elizabeth Hamlet makes her return to Rochester. The fifth-year senior graduated from Oakland last year and is seeking a graduate degree at Valpo.
- The Crusaders are looking for a win in their HL road opener for the first time since the 2007-08 season.
- Oakland’s Olivia Nash and Valpo’s Sharon Karungi are tied for third in the league with five double-doubles each.
- Of the 15 players on Oakland’s roster, 13 hail from Michigan.
@OaklandWBB
- @OaklandWBB is the only HL team to score 100 points in a game this season.
- @OaklandWBB leads the Horizon League in blocked shots with 48 and is averaging a shade under 10 steals per contest.
-@OaklandWBB forward Bethany Watterworth leads the HL in field goal percentage at .519 (56-for-108).
-Six of @OaklandWBB’s nine losses have come to Indiana, UCF, #3 Tennessee, Temple Michigan State, and Minnesota (combined 66-28).
- Olivia Nash is @OaklandWBB’s leading scorer (12.8 PPG).
- Two other Golden Grizzlies are averaging double digits (Elena Popkey, 12.2 PPG, Watterworth, 10.8 PPG) and Kim Bee possesses a 9.9 average.
- @OaklandWBB is shooting just 28.9% from three-point range.
- Jeff Tungate is in his first season as head coach of the Golden Grizzlies.
- Tungate was associate head coach of the men’s team at Oakland for six years before being named the women’s head coach on 7/16/13.
Jessica Carr
- Scored 12 points and had four assists in just her second game of the season.
- Made her season debut versus Western Michigan on Dec. 29th, where she scored five points and notched an assist, steal, and rebound.
Elizabeth Hamlet
- Shot 3-for-5 from the field in Valpo’s 63-61 defeat of Toledo at the Toledo Invite.
Abby Dean
- Has made 17 of her last 18 free-throw attempts.
- Leads the Horizon League in free-throw percentage (91.4%).
- Has knocked down five field goals in five different contests.
- Compiled 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 17-point games.
- Has started every game for the Crusaders.
- Registered a career-high 17 points at Tennessee Tech on 11/24/13.
- Scored first collegiate points at Cameron Indoor Stadium on 11/23/12.
- Made collegiate debut on November 14th versus Purdue-Calumet.
- Tossed in 11 points in 19 minutes vs.Western Michigan last season.
Lexi Miller
- Has missed last four games as she recovers from a concussion.
- Tallied 13 assists to five turnovers during the Toledo Invite.
- Scored a career-high 18 points vs. Tennessee Tech.
- Owns best assists/turnover ratio of any Crusader (29:28).
- Accumulated 15 points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals (all career highs at the time) at Saint Louis on 11/10/13.
- Made collegiate debut against the Indiana Hoosiers 11/9/12.
- Made first start in Hinkle Fieldhouse versus the Butler Bulldogs.
- Scored 13 points in Valpo’s 88-62 victory over UIC on 2/16/13.
Charae Richardson
- Has scored 13 or more points in six of team’s 14 games.
- Scored a career-high 23 points versus Montana State.
- Dished out a season-high seven assists at Tennessee Tech.
- Leads team in points/game (11.7) and total assists (39).
- Scored 15 points in the season opener at Saint Louis on Nov. 10th.
- Played in all 31 games for the Crusaders last season, including 28 starts.
- Carried an 84.1 free-throw percentage.
- Finished second on the team last season in 3-pointers (24) and assists (95).
Liz Horton
- Made five of six three-point attempts en route to a career-high 20 points at Tulsa on 1/4/14.
- On an eight-game streak where she’s made at least one three-pointer.
- Shot 23-of-45 from the field in December including 10-for-19 from behind the arc.
- Leads team in three-point field goal percentage (44.4%) and in total FG% (47.4%)
- Has scored exactly 11 points on four different occasions this season (Illinois, #6 Notre Dame, Montana State, Toledo).
- Appeared in 30 games for the Brown and Gold a season ago.
- Named Crusaders’ Most Improved Player in 2012-13.
- Scored 19 points, including 3-for-3 shooting from behind the arc, at Western Michigan on Dec. 19th.
Sharon Karungi
- Scored a career-high 21 points in her first HL game last Thursday.
- Leading rebounder (8.4) for the Crusaders.
- Averaging 10.7 points per game.
- Tied for third in Horizon League with most double-doubles (5).
- Grabbed 14 rebounds in both games of the Toledo Invite en route to Most Valuable Player recognition.
- Scored the game-winning put-back with three seconds to play against Toledo.
- Registered 17 points and 14 boards versus FIU for her third double-double of the season.
- Tallied her second double-double at Tennessee Tech, scoring 11 points and collecting 10 rebounds.
- Recorded her first double-double at Illinois on Nov. 12th, throwing in 15 points and grabbing 12 boards.
Jessi Wiedemann
- One of only two Crusaders to start every game thus far for Coach Dorow.
- Named to Toledo Invite All-Tournament Team after scoring 15 versus Chicago State and 14 against Toledo.
- Double-digit scorer in seven games for the Crusaders.
- Has made multiple three-pointers in six games in 2013-14.
- Notched a career-high 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting at Tennessee Tech.
- Leads team in steals (20) and blocks (9).
- Snapped a season-starting 0-14 slump from behind the arc at #6 Notre Dame, nailing three treys in a nine-point game.
- Played all 40 minutes in the season opener at Saint Louis on Nov. 10th, 2013, and set career highs in blocks (4) and steals (3) while scoring six points.
- Appeared in all 31 games including four starts as a freshman.
- Made collegiate debut versus Indiana.
- Scored 13 points off the bench versus Detroit on Mar. 9th, 2013.
Roster Breakdown
- Valpo welcomes six new players (two freshmen, four transfers) to its team this season.
- Haylee Thompson and Annemarie Hamlet will sit out this season per NCAA transfer eligibilty rules.
- The Brown and Gold boast players from six different states and two countries.
- Liz Horton is the only true senior on this year’s squad.
