Valparaiso (1-11, 0-3 MVC)
Game #13 - January 12, 2024 - 6 p.m.
Drake (10-4, 3-0 MVC)
Athletics-Recreation Center (5,000) - Valparaiso, Ind.
Next Up in Valpo Basketball: The long and winding stretch of road games has finally come to a close for the Valpo women’s basketball team, as the Beacons play their next four games at the ARC, starting on Friday evening as MVC play continues against Drake.
Previously: Valpo was able to erase the majority of a 21-point fourth-quarter deficit at Southern Illinois Saturday afternoon, limiting the Salukis to just three points in a stretch of seven-plus minutes, but the Beacons were unable to get closer than seven points down the stretch, falling to SIU, 75-66. Ella Van Weelden sparked the comeback effort with four 3-pointers in the final quarter for a career-best 12 points, while Saniya Jackson paced Valpo with a season-high 15 points.
Following Valpo Basketball: Streaming Video: ESPN+
Links for live coverage: Available via ValpoAthletics.com
Head Coach Mary Evans: Mary Evans is in her sixth year at the helm of the program in 2023-24 and owns a record of 56-102. Evans has made an impact on the program in her first five years, raising the team’s level of play to be competitive in a strong Missouri Valley Conference. The 2022-23 season saw Evans lead Valpo to the first win in program history over perennial MVC power Missouri State. The Beacons also won three consecutive road games in Valley play, the first time the program accomplished that feat against three different opponents since 2007.
Series Notes: Drake leads the all-time series over Valpo by a 15-2 margin. The Bulldogs claimed victories in both matchups last season, winning in Des Moines, 84-51, and at the ARC, 71-54. Olivia Brown paced the Beacons in the road game with 16 points, while Ali Saunders matched that total in the home matchup.
@ValpoWBB...
...and @ValleyHoops
- Valpo was picked to finish in 10th place in the MVC preseason poll, totaling 162 points, coming in ahead of Evansville and Bradley.
- Valpo is in its seventh season as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.
- The Valley was ranked 13th in conference NET last season. The MVC ranked 10th in conference NET in 2021-22, seventh in conference NET in 2020-21 and was eighth in conference RPI in 2019-20.
...looking back at last year
- Valpo finished last season with a 7-23 overall record and finished at 5-15 in MVC play, good for 11th in the Valley standings.
- The Beacons earned their first win in program history over perennial MVC power Missouri State.
- Valpo also won three consecutive road games in Valley play, the first time the program accomplished that feat against three different opponents since 2007.
- Ali Saunders was named to the MVC All-Freshman Team.
...at Southern Illinois
- Southern Illinois led by as many as 12 in the first quarter before Valpo rallied to within 23-17 at the end of the period.
- The Salukis went on a 9-0 run over the first 1:22 of the second quarter to extend their lead and led 43-27 at halftime.
- SIU led 61-42 with 10 minutes to play and pushed its lead to 21 early in the fourth quarter.
- Valpo went on a 16-3 run to erase two-thirds of the deficit over the next seven minutes, but was unable to get any closer than seven down the stretch.
- Saniya Jackson set a season high with 15 points, shooting 6-of-12 from the field. Beyond the scoring column, the freshman also paced the Beacons with six rebounds and three steals.
- Leah Earnest scored in double figures for the 11th time in 12 games, finishing with 12 points. She also handed out a game-high six assists to match her career best.
- Ella Van Weelden scored all of her career-high 12 points in the fourth quarter, knocking down a career-best four 3-pointers.
- The two teams enjoyed a pretty even shooting effort from the floor. Valpo hit at a 43.6% (24-of-55) clip and knocked down seven 3-pointers, while Southern Illinois hit 43.1% (22-of-51) and connected on five triples.
- The difference between the two squads came at the foul line. The Beacons were just 11-of-21 from the charity stripe, versus a 26-of-29 mark at the line from the Salukis.
- Valpo limited SIU, which entered the game averaging 12.6 offensive rebounds/game, to just nine offensive boards. In fact, the Beacons — who gathered eight offensive rebounds of their own — enjoyed a 13-10 edge in second chance points.
...at Missouri State
- The Beacons hit just one field goal in the first quarter as the Lady Bears led 20-5 10 minutes into the game.
- Missouri State extended its lead to as many as 20 points in the second quarter, but the Beacons held the Lady Bears to just three points over the final five minutes of the period to close the deficit to 30-14 at intermission.
- Valpo cut the MSU lead to 12 points multiple times in the third quarter, but the Lady Bears extended back out to a 49-31 edge at the end of the period.
- Olivia Brown hit back-to-back 3-pointers early in the fourth quarter, followed two possessions later by a Leah Earnest basket, to force an MSU timeout with 6:52 to play and Valpo within 52-41.
- The Beacons were unable to keep the momentum after the stoppage, however, going over four minutes in between field goals as MSU went on a 10-2 run to put the game away.
- Brown knocked down a trio of 3-pointers, going 3-of-5 from behind the arc, on her way to a game-high 15 points.
- Earnest scored in double figures for the 10th time in the season’s first 11 games, finishing with 10 points. The senior also led all players with nine rebounds and handed out a team-high three assists.
- Raeven Raye-Redmond ensured she would remain among the conference’s leaders in steals as she racked up five takeaways, her second-best single-game effort of the year.
- It was a tale of two halves shooting the ball for the Beacons. Valpo hit just 5-of-20 from the field in the first half and was 0-of-6 from deep. In the final 20 minutes, the Beacons hit 12-of-24 from the floor and were 5-of-12 from 3-point range.
- Valpo committed 21 turnovers while forcing 16 Missouri State miscues, but the Lady Bears held a significant 22-8 edge in points off turnovers.
...looking ahead
- Valpo closes its first weekend of Valley home play on Sunday afternoon when it welcomes UNI to the ARC.
- The four-game homestand continues next weekend against Illinois State (Jan. 19) and Bradley (Jan. 21).
...at the ARC
- Valpo will play 12 regular season home games during the 2023-24 campaign. Friday is the Beacons’ third home game of the season.
- The Beacons are 1-1 at home so far this year and posted a 3-12 record at home last season.
@DrakeWBB
- Drake enters Friday evening’s game at 10-4 overall on the season.
- The Bulldogs have won their last four contests, including three in a row to start Valley play - most recently a 78-68 win over Evansville.
- Four Drake players average in double figures in the scoring column, led by 19.2 points/game from Katie Dinnebier, who also hands out 5.7 assists/game.
Remember the ARC?
- Valpo finally returns to its home court on Friday, playing its first home game since taking on Chicago State Dec. 9.
- That matchup against the Cougars was the Beacons’ lone regular season home game in a span of 55 days.
- Last Saturday’s game at SIU wrapped up a stretch where Valpo played nine out of 10 games away from home.
- It will be 34 days between the Chicago State game and Friday’s matchup with Drake, the program’s longest stretch between home games since the 1999-2000 team went 35 days between home contests.
- The game on Friday, Jan. 12 is just Valpo’s third home game of the year, the latest in the calendar the program has played its third home game of the season since the 1988-89 squad played its third home game on Jan. 18.
3lla Van W33ld3n
- Redshirt sophomore Ella Van Weelden was the offensive impetus behind the Beacons’ run at Southern Illinois in the fourth quarter last Saturday.
- Van Weelden delivered 12 points in the final period, hitting 4-of-6 from behind the 3-point line in that 10-minute stretch.
- Incredibly, her output in that quarter alone was enough to set a career high in the scoring column, surpassing her previous best of nine points - set in her collegiate debut last year against Southern Miss.
- Van Weelden became the third Beacon to score in double digits in a single quarter this season - Leah Earnest scored 12 in the first quarter and Olivia Brown scored 14 in the third quarter against Chicago State.
Youth in the Lineup
- When the Beacons took the court for the opening tip last Saturday at Southern Illinois, 60% of the starting lineup was comprised of freshmen.
- Layla Gold made her first collegiate start, joining Saniya Jackson and Nevaeh Jackson in the starting five.
- It was the first time Valpo has started three freshmen since March 11, 2016, when Hannah Schaub, Meredith Hamlet and Amber Lindfors were in the starting lineup against Northern Kentucky.
- Gold’s insertion into the lineup was necessitated after Olivia Brown suffered an injury in the foruth quarter of the previous game at Missouri State which kept her out against the Salukis. It was the first game Brown has missed in her three years at Valpo, snapping a streak of 71 consecutive games played.
Another Leap Forward
- Senior Leah Earnest took a jump forward in her production last season, and has taken another leap this year.
- Earnest enters Friday’s game ranked eighth in the conference in scoring (13.9 points/game), eighth in field goal percentage (.500) and 10th in rebounding (6.8 rebounds/game).
- She is also averaging team-best marks of 6.5 rebounds/game and 2.9 assists/game as well.
- Earnest is on pace to become the first Valpo player since Debbie Bolen in 1991-92 to lead the team in points, rebounds and assists.
- Earnest has been consistent, scoring in double figures in 11 of 12 games to date.
- Earnest entered this season with a career high of 20 in the scoring column, but has outdone that three times this year, including a career-best 26 points at UAB.
- With her seventh rebound last Thursday at Missouri State, Earnest hit the 500-rebound mark for her career, becoming the 19th player in program history with 500 career boards. She enters Friday’s game ranked 18th in program history with 505 career rebounds.
Productive Rookie
- Freshman Saniya Jackson scored just 11 points combined over her first three collegiate games, but has been a steady hand on the offensive end since then.
- Jackson’s first double-figure scoring effort came at UAB, when she scored 13 points.
- Jackson has scored in double figures in six of Valpo’s last nine games, including a season-best 15 last time out to lead the Beacons against Southern Illinois.
- Jackson is shooting at a 48.8% clip from the field this season, including a 68.1% mark from inside the arc.
- Jackson has racked up 23 steals this year - second-most on the team - while committing just 13 turnovers. Per HerHoopStats.com, as of Wednesday, she is one of just 20 D-I players with 20+ steals and 15 or fewer turnovers.
Thievery Abounds
- Valpo has gotten back to its stealing ways on the defensive end this season.
- The Beacons rank 36th nationally with 10.9 steals/game, and per HerHoopStats.com, their steal rate of 12.7% is good for 30th nationally.
- Valpo has been in double figures in steals in six games this season, highlighted by an 18-steal effort against Western Illinois Nov. 18.
- The 18 steals was the program’s best single-game mark since tallying 21 steals at Evansville on Jan. 12, 2020, and is tied for the second-highest output in Evans’ tenure as head coach.
- Freshman Raeven Raye-Redmond currently ranks second in the Valley with 2.7 steals/game despite playing just 16.9 minutes/game.
- Raye-Redmond ranks 31st nationally in steals/game, while her steal rate of 7.6% is tops nationally among players playing at least 10 minutes/game - only Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo and Norfolk State’s Diamond Johnson even crack 7% in steal rate while playing at least 10 minutes/game.
- Twice already this year, the Beacons have had a player tally eight steals in a game - Saniya Jackson did so Nov. 25 at UAB and Raye-Redmond did so in her collegiate debut in the aforementioned Western Illinois game.
- Jackson and Raye-Redmond are two of just 24 D-I players nationally to record eight or more steals in a single game so far this season.
- The duo are now tied for second on Valpo’s single-game steals chart, just one off the program single-game record.
- Prior to this year, the last Valpo player to tally eight steals in a game was Jeanette Gray against Houston in the 2002 WNIT.
- Raye-Redmond was the first MVC player to record eight steals in a game since UNI’s Ellie Herzberg did so against Indiana State on Feb. 19, 2017.
