Oakland (11-14, 6-6 Horizon)
at Valparaiso (3-21, 1-10 Horizon)

Game #25 - Saturday, February 22 - 7:05 p.m.
Athletics-Recreation Center (5,000) -
Valparaiso, Ind.

Next Up in Crusader Basketball: After a week off, the Crusaders return to the court to face Oakland on a busy Saturday at the ARC. In addition to the men playing beforehand at 3:00 pm and Hall of Fame ceremonies, the women’s contest will serve as Valpo’s Play 4 Kay Breast Cancer Awareness game. The evening tilt is also the Brown and Gold’s Father-Daughter game.

Last Time Out: Valpo closed out its Ohio swing trip with an 84-56 loss to Youngstown State. The Penguins drained a season-high 13 three-pointers as 60% field goal shooting (15-for-25) in the first half had YSU ahead 42-27 after twenty minutes. Charae Richardson tied a career-high with nine field goals en route to a 19-point afternoon. Sharon Karungi scored 12 points to finish in double figures in three consecutive games for the first time since December 13th. Youngstown State shot 19 free throws on the afternoon opposed to just one for Valparaiso.

Following the Crusaders: Audio - WVUR (95.1 FM, Valparaiso) - Brandon Vickrey, Renee Turpa, and Parker Gatewood will all be on the call. Video - Horizon League Network. Links for the audio, video 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 (14-41) 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: Oakland leads the all-time series 14-9 over Valpo. The Golden Grizzlies have taken four in a row dating back to January of 2006. The Crusaders last win over Oakland inside the Athletics-Recreation Center came on February 24th, 2003.

Storylines...
- The Crusaders are in search of their first win in the month of February.
- Oakland’s 88-55 win over Valpo in the team’s last meeting was the Crusaders’ largest margin of defeat in Horizon League play this season.
- Crusader guard Elizabeth Hamlet graduated from Oakland last May.
- Hamlet played three seasons for the Golden Grizzlies.
- Valpo and Oakland met in the Mid-Con Conference Tourney in four straight seasons (2000-2003).

@OaklandWBB
- @OaklandWBB’s Elena Popkey is third in the HL in total assists (105), and second in 3-point FG% (41.6%).
- Popkey had a career-high 25 points on 10-of-14 shooting (5-6 3FG) last time out versus the Crusaders.
- @OaklandWBB have outscored opponents by four points (1,765-1,761) all season.
- Four @OaklandWBB players are averaging over 10 points/game.
- @OaklandWBB’s eight blocks versus Valpo on 1/15/14 were the second-most by a Horizon League team this year.
- @OaklandWBB’s Kim Bee blocked her 50th shot of the season vs. Detroit on February 13th.
- Bethany Watterworth is @OaklandWBB’s leading scorer (14.3 PPG).
- @OaklandWBB is shooting just 29.9% 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
- Notched five assists to just one turnover versus UIC on 2/10/14.
- Tallied seven steals versus Detroit on 1/23/14.
- Gave out a career-high six assists at UIC on 1/21/14.
- Scored 12 points and had four assists vs. South Dakota on 12/31/13.
- Made her season debut versus Western Michigan on Dec. 29th, where she scored five points and notched an assist, steal, and rebound.

Elizabeth Hamlet
- Scored a season-high 12 points versus her alma mater (Oakland) on Jan. 15.
- Shot 3-for-5 from the field in Valpo’s 63-61 defeat of Toledo at the Toledo Invite.

Abby Dean
- Averaged 14.0 PPG in a four-game stretch from 1/21 to 2/1.
- Poured in a career high 20 points and six steals vs. Detroit on 1/23/14.
- Has knocked down exactly five field goals in seven different contests.
- Only Crusader to start every game thus far.
- Tallied a then career-high 17 points at Tennessee Tech on Nov. 24th.
- 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
- Scored 13 points off the bench on 5-of-6 shooting at Green Bay on 2/3.
- Tallied 13 assists to five turnovers during the Toledo Invite.
- Scored a career-high 18 points vs. Tennessee Tech on 11/24/13.
- 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
- Valpo’s leading scorer (11.2 PPG).
- Has recorded at least one steal in each of her last thirteen games.
- Has scored a dozen or more points in eleven of team’s 24 games.
- Scored a career-high 23 points versus Montana State.
- Dished out a season-high seven assists at Tennessee Tech.
- Leads team in total assists (74) and steals (32).
- 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
- Listed as day-to-day (back).
- Has scored exactly 15 points in three of her last five games.
- Made five of six three-point attempts en route to a career-high 20 points at Tulsa on 1/4/14.
- Snapped an eight-game three-point streak at Oakland on 1/15/14.
- 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 (40%)
- 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
- Posted a career-high 25 points at Cleveland State on 2/13/14.
- Has finished in double figures in points in each of the last three tilts.
- Shot a season-best 85.7% (12-14) from the floor at CSU on 2/13/14.
- Scored a then career-high 21 points in her first HL game (1/9/14).
- Leading rebounder (7.0) for the Crusaders.
- 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 vs. 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
- Registered a career-high 21 points vs. Cleveland State on 1/27/14.
- Named to Toledo Invite All-Tournament Team after scoring 15 versus Chicago State and 14 against Toledo.
- Double figure scorer in thirteen games for the Crusaders.
- Has made multiple three-pointers in ten games in 2013-14.
- 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 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.