Manchester and Transylvania Highlight Women’s Basketball Slate
December 7, 2007
GREENWOOD , IN – Three teams remain unblemished in the HCAC standings as the conference schedule heads into the second week of conference play. After this Saturday, there will be a three week hiatus until conference play resumes Saturday, January 5.
The marquee match-up Saturday afternoon will take place at Manchester. The host Spartans (4-2, 1-0 HCAC) come in as conference defending champions and will welcome Transylvania (3-3, 1-0 HCAC) to North Manchester.
Manchester enters the contest winning four of their last five games, including their only conference game last week. The Spartans claimed a 59-55 win at home over Mount St. Joseph last Saturday. Junior forward Kelley Meiklejohn (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Carroll) scored 14 points and grabbed six rebounds in the win over the Lions and leads the team with 13.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game this season. After Saturday’s game with Transy, Manchester will not return to action until December 16 at Carthage.
Transylvania, like Manchester, enters the showdown playing good basketball. The Pioneers have won three of their past four games, including two wins last week. TU began the week with a 67-62 non-conference win over Spalding Saturday afternoon before defeating Anderson 61-56 on Wednesday night. Freshman center Sarah Sexton (South Shore, Ky./Greenup Co.) scored 18 points and added eight rebounds in the win over Spalding. Sophomore guard Brittany Henderlight (Versailles, Ky./Woodford Co.) turned in an outstanding performance in the Pioneers win over Anderson. The sophomore scored 27 points on 11 of 16 shooting, including four three point buckets and five rebounds. Henderlight leads TU with 13.5 points per game this season.
Transy currently leads the HCAC in points per game this season, averaging a league-best 70.3 points per game. The Pioneers will return to the court after Saturday’s game December 15 at Maryville (TN).
Around the HCAC...
Rose-Hulman (3-2, 2-0 HCAC) will look to finish the early portion of the conference schedule as the only 3-0 team in HCAC play. The Engineers have won three of their last four games, defeating Hanover 52-51 and Franklin 38-30 last week. Junior forward Liz Ridgway (Grosse Point, Mich.) recorded 11 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double against the Panthers. Against Franklin, sophomore forward Shayna Banet (Canton, Ga./ Woodstock) scored 15 points to lead the scoring in the 38-30 win. Banet leads RHIT with 9.0 points per game this season. As a team, the Engineers only converted 25.0% of their field goals in the win against the Grizzlies. This season, Rose leads the conference in scoring defense (46.8 ppg) and field goal percentage defense (27.0%). The Engineers will play host to Bluffton Saturday before returning to non-conference play Dec. 13 at Robert Morris-Springfield.
Hanover (3-2, 1-1 HCAC) has been playing good basketball during the early portion of the schedule, claiming wins in three of their last four contests. The Panthers lost at Rose-Hulman 52-51 last Saturday and earned a 63-56 win at home over Mount St. Joseph Wednesday night. Freshman center Molly Martin (Terre Haute, Ind./ North Vigo) scored 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the loss to Rose and bettered that effort with 22 points and 11 rebounds against the Mount. Martin ranks second in the HCAC with 14.8 points per game this season and also ranks second in rebounding (9.4 rpg) behind teammate Rachel Walters (Ladoga, Ind./Southmont) (10.4 rpg). Another freshman turned in a solid performance in the loss to Rose-Hulman. Freshman guard Micah Whitted (Norman, Ind./Bedford-North Lawrence) scored 16 points and added five assists. The Panthers will play host to Defiance Saturday afternoon before a home date against Spalding on December 15.
Anderson University (3-3, 1-1 HCAC) split two conference games last week. The Ravens beat Defiance 85-66 last Saturday and fell at Transylvania 61-56 Wednesday night. Junior forward Kayla Martin (Bedford, Ind./Bedford-North Lawrence) scored 15 points and added nine rebounds in the Defiance win and added 11 points and nine boards in the loss to TU. Martin has been AU’s leading scorer in all three Raven wins this season. The junior forward averages 12.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game this season. Anderson will play a road game against Mount St. Joseph this weekend and travel to Elmhurst ( Ill.) this coming Tuesday.
Defiance (2-2, 1-1 HCAC) earned a win and a loss in last week’s conference play. The Yellow Jackets began the week with an 85-66 loss at Anderson. Senior forward Sarah Bird (Fayette, Ohio/Gorham-Fayette) scored 17 points in the loss to the Ravens to lead DC’s scoring effort. She added a team-high 16 points in a 68-65 win over rival Bluffton Wednesday night. Bird ranks third in the conference, averaging 14.2 points per game this season. Defiance travels to Hanover Saturday to end the early conference schedule and will play host to Marygrove Friday, December 14.
Franklin College (3-3, 1-1 HCAC) has alternated wins and losses through the first six games this season. The Grizzlies began the week with a 67-60 win at Bluffton and could not find the basket in a 38-30 loss at Rose-Hulman Wednesday night. In the loss against the Engineers, the Grizzlies trailed 13-8 at halftime and finished the game shooting 16.2% from the field. Sophomore center Heather Harper (Mooresville, Ind./H.S.) grabbed 10 rebounds in the loss to the Engineers. FC turned in a better offensive output against Bluffton. Senior forward Kelly Snider (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) scored 18 points to lead the scoring against the Beavers, and Harper added 17 points in the win. The Grizzlies will not return to conference play until January 5 and will face North Central ( Ill.) in a non-conference game Saturday.
Bluffton (3-4, 0-2 HCAC) dropped a pair of tight games last week. The Beavers fell to Franklin 67-60 and lost at rival Defiance 68-65. Freshman forward Kim Miller (Delphos, Ohio/ St. John’s) scored 18 points and grabbed six rebounds in the loss to the Jackets. Senior guard Angie Lee (Mt. Blanchard, Ohio/Vanlue) added 17 points in the loss and continues to lead BU and the HCAC in scoring with 15.4 points per game. Bluffton will travel to Rose-Hulman Saturday and will return to the non-conference schedule December 14 against Oberlin.
Mount St. Joseph (1-5, 0-2 HCAC) lost both conference games last week, falling 59-55 at Manchester and 63-56 at Hanover. Senior forward Ashleigh Stallkamp (Paulding, Ohio/H.S.) scored 13 points in the loss to Manchester and 14 in the defeat to Hanover. The senior has led the Lions in scoring five out of the team’s six games this season, averaging 14.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. MSJ leads the HCAC in field goal percentage (41.6%) and three point field goal percentage (35.6%) this season. The Mount will host Anderson Saturday and take on rival Thomas More December 15.
Women’s Basketball Schedule (Dec. 8 -Dec. 12)
Dec. 8 |
Bluffton at Rose-Hulman |
1:00 PM |
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Defiance at Hanover |
1:00 PM |
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Transylvania at Manchester |
3:00 PM |
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Anderson at Mount St. Joseph |
3:00 PM |
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Franklin at North Central (Ill.) |
3:00 PM |
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Dec. 11 |
Anderson at Elmhurst |
7:00 PM |