Jan. 22, 2007

Lutes Sweep Weekend to Get Back in NWC Mix

THIS WEEK: The Lutes (9-6 overall, 2-4 NWC) travel to Oregon to take on Linfield, Friday 6 p.m., and Pacific, Saturday, 6 p.m.

BACK IN THE MIX: The Pacific Lutheran women’s basketball team entered last weekend winless in Northwest Conference action. It starts this week with two big wins under its belt and a fresh outlook on the season. The Lutes are now 2-4 in conference play, which places them in a tie for sixth place with Linfield, with 10 games remaining. The NWC playoffs take the top three teams. PLU is only 1 1/2 games behind Whitman and Whitworth, currently tied for third place. George Fox lead the conference with a 6-0 record, followed by Puget Sound in second at 5-1. Making the NWC tournament will definitely be an uphill battle for the Lutes, but after last weekend the path has become easier.

ABOUT LINFIELD: Looking at the Linfield women’s basketball schedule one might mistake it for the Lutes schedule. This is because the two teams find themselves in very similar situations at this point in the season. Both the Lutes and Wildcats had a successful non-conference schedule, only for both teams to drop their first four NWC games. This four-game skid was halted this past weekend by both teams after they each won their first two NWC games. The Wildcats are tied with the Lutes for sixth place in the NWC at 2-4, with a 9-6 overall record. Linfield is led by NWC Player of the Week Brihtani Lassiter, who scored 41 points and added 10 rebounds in last weekend’s games. She made 56 percent of her shots from the field and 86 percent of her free throws. Lassiter averages 12.7 points per game and is the only Linfield player to average in double figures. Six-foot-one Kate Stadeli leads the Wildcats in rebounds (70) and blocks (10) this season while averaging just under nine points a game, while Casey Stepan (9.6 ppg) and Courtney McFadden (9.0 ppg) are both capable of providing a scoring punch.

BACK IN ’96: A lot of things happened in 1996. Atlanta hosted the Olympic games, rap artist Tupac Shakur was murdered, and it was also the last time Linfield beat PLU in women’s basketball. On the line this weekend is a 24-game win streak dating back 12 years. The streak is the longest current winning streak for the Lutes. PLU leads the all-time series between the two schools 37-16, which dates back to 1981. Last season the Lutes swept Linfield, 61-39 at home, and 57-30 on the road.

ABOUT PACIFIC: After winning its first NWC game of the season, Pacific has dropped its last five games. They are currently tied for eighth in the NWC with a 1-5 record and are 2-12 overall. Amy Pedersen ranks third in the conference in scoring, averaging an even 15 points a game. She also ranks third in rebounding per game with 8.5.

ALL-TIME SERIES: PLU holds the advantage in the all-time series against the Boxers, 31-22. The two teams first met in 1981. Pacific last beat PLU in 2004, edging the Lutes 58-56. The Lutes won both games last season, taking a 68-45 win in Tacoma and a 68-50 decision in the season finale in Forest Grove.

Haag ranks 4th in the country in three-pointers per game

Gibbons ranks nationally in assists per game

HAAG ON PACE: Senior guard Kyle Haag is on pace to break the Pacific Lutheran women's basketball single-season record for most three-point field goals made. After 15 games, Haag already has 49 "treys," which ranks her in a fifth-place tie on the PLU season list. At her current rate, she'll end up with 81 three-point field goals, easily surpassing the school record 67 made by Kelly Turner during the 2005-06 season.

NATIONAL RANKINGS: Good things come in threes for senior Kyle Haag - three points to be exact. The senior from Tumwater is assaulting the record books this season with her shooting from behind the three-point line. Along with making a splash in the PLU record books, Haag is making waves on the national scene as well. Haag is currently ranked fourth in the NCAA Division III in three-point field goals pre game with an average of 3.3 a game. Haag is also ranked 33rd in three-point field goal percentage, making 40.5 percent of her attempts. Senior Trinity Gibbons accompanies Haag in the national statistics, ranking 56th in assists per game, averaging 4.6.

WHITWORTH RECAP: The hot shooting of senior Emily Voorhies led the Pacific Lutheran women’s basketball team to an impressive 81-64 win over Whitworth in a Northwest Conference women’s basketball game played last Friday night in Olson Auditorium. Voorhies shot 9-of-12 from the field and pulled down seven rebounds as PLU earned its first conference win of the season. Whitworth was looking for its first road win against the Lutes since the 1993-94 season when it beat PLU, 70-42. The Lutes jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the first half on a jumper by Nikki Scott. The Pirates rallied back and a three ball from Molly Schlander pulled them within one, 16-15. Whitworth took the lead 20-18, but Amy Spieker scored one of her two three-pointers to grab back the lead. The Lutes would not relinquish the lead for the remainder of the game. PLU went into the locker room with a 43-33 lead. PLU shot over 60 percent from the field in the first half (19-of-31), their best percentage in a half this season. The second half was all PLU as it jumped out to a 49-35 lead. Whitworth used a 5-0 run to pull within nine, but that’s as close as they would get. The Lutes led by as many as 20 as they shut the door on the Pirates. PLU shot 50 percent from the field in the second half, tying the second best half of shooting they’ve had all season, only behind the first half of tonight’s game. The Lutes shot 55 percent for the game. A total of four Lutes were in double figures in tonight’s game. Kyle Haag had 13 points, Amy Spieker added 12, and Trinity Gibbons had 11. Melissa Richardson led PLU in rebounding with nine. PLU dominated Whitworth on the boards, out-rebounding the Pirates, 45-24.

WHITMAN RECAP: Coming off an impressive win over Whitworth, the Pacific Lutheran women’s basketball team put on another great performance as it beat Whitman College, 65-52, in a Northwest Conference game played last Saturday night in Olson Auditorium. The Lutes got off to a hot start with a pair of three balls from Kyle Haag that put PLU on top 10-2 early in the game. Whitman tried to get back into the game with a jumper by Emily Shubin, who was fouled on the play. Shubin made the free throw that pulled the Missionaries within six, 13-7. The Lutes responded with a 16-4 run that gave PLU a 29-11 lead with less than six minutes in the half. Whitman added a few more points before the end of the half but PLU went into the locker room with a commanding 31-19 lead. The Lutes shot well in the first half making 12-of-28 shots for 42.9 percent, compared to Whitman's 8-of-28 for 27.6 percent. The Lutes were able to hold off Whitman for the entire second half. The Missionaries never got within nine points of the Lutes who led by as much as 18. Kyle Haag had a huge game for PLU as she scored 22 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 6-of-11 from three-point range. Emily Voorhies and Amy Spieker scored 12 and 11 points, respectively, while Trinity Gibbons had eight assists for the Lutes.

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