Jan. 29, 2008

Lutes Earn Huge Weekend Sweep; Prepare to Host No. 12 George Fox

THIS WEEK: The Pacific Lutheran women’s basketball team hosts a pair of Northwest Conference foes this weekend. On Friday, the Lutes battle George Fox in Olson Auditorium at 6 p.m.. On Saturday, the Lutes play host to Lewis & Clark at 6 p.m. in Olson.

ABOUT THE BRUINS: The George Fox women’s squad has been the team to beat in the Northwest Conference this season. The Bruins are 16-1 overall and undefeated in conference play. The one blemish on their record was a 61-58 loss against No. 21 William Smith College. Statistically, George Fox is ranked number one nationally in NCAA Division III in scoring defense, holding their opponents to an average of 43 points a game. The Bruins are also ranked eighth in the country in scoring margin (23.5) and 10th in rebound margin (10.9). In the NWC, you’ll find George Fox ranked No. 1 in 10 of the 19 team statistical categories. Individually, Katy Campbell ranks in the top five in both scoring (14.5) and rebounds (7.5) per game. Campbell leads the NWC in field goal percentage, shooting 90-for-158 from the field, or 57 percent. Melissa Marek-Farris, at 6-1, towers over the conference in blocked shots with 36 on the season, 12 more than Lewis & Clark's Allison Farr.

ALL-TIME SERIES: The Lutes and the Bruins have met 34 times since 1981 with both teams taking 17 games. George Fox has won the last three meetings, including a 64-40 victory earlier this season.

ABOUT THE PIOS: Lewis & Clark (9-9, 5-4) currently holds sole possession of third place in the NWC after a 65-45 win over Pacific last night. Crystal Castle and Allison Farr lead the way for the Pios in scoring averaging 15.5 and 14.1 points a game, respectively. Castle is ranked second in the NWC in scoring and rebounds per game. Kimberly Kittell leads the conference in steals per game and is second in assists per game, behind PLU’s own Trinity Gibbons.

ALL-TIME SERIES: Pacific Lutheran has dominated Lewis & Clark in this series. The Lutes lead the all-time series, 40-14, but are currently on a two-game skid to the Pioneers, including a 70-67 overtime loss to L&C earlier this season.

Kyle Haag - National Leader

HAAG LEADS NATION: Pacific Lutheran senior Kyle Haag leads the NCAA Division III in three-point field goals made per game. Last weekend, Haag made 11 long balls, which bumped her average up to 3.5 three-pointers a game, good enough to move her from fourth to first in the nation. Haag’s 60 three-pointers this season are more then any other athlete in Division III. More dangerous to PLU’s opponents than the amount of threes Haag makes is her accuracy. Haag is 60-for-141 for the season, or 43 percent, which places her 19th in the nation. In NWC games, Haag has shot an amazing 32-for-63 from behind the line, or 51 percent.

OTHER NATIONAL RANKINGS: Senior Trinity Gibbons averages 4.5 assists per game, ranking her 57th in the country. As a team, PLU ranks 43rd in three-point field goal percentage at 35 percent. The Lutes also rank in the top 50 in scoring defense, holding opponents to 55.2 points per game on average. Three other NWC teams, George Fox, Whitman and UPS, also rank in the top 50 in that category.

NWC PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Senior Kyle Haag was honored as the Northwest Conference Player of the Week for her outstanding performance this past weekend. Haag made 55 percent (11-for-20) of her three-point attempts and totaled 39 points in a pair of NWC road victories. She added 13 rebounds and four assists.

25 AND COUNTING: Kyle Haag scored 22 points as Pacific Lutheran defeated the Linfield Wildcats, 69-60, in a Northwest Conference women's basketball game played last Friday night at Ted Wilson Gymnasium. The win was the Lutes' 25th straight over Linfield dating back to the 1995-96 season. Haag finished the game 8-for-17 from the field and 6-for-11 from beyond the arc. Haag also made 6-for-11 from three-point range while scoring 22 points in the Lutes' 65-52 win over Whitman last Saturday. The three-point specialist came up with two key treys in the final 4:30 to take away any hopes of a Linfield comeback. The Wildcats held the Lutes in check in the opening minutes as PLU opened the game 1-for-10 from the field, but PLU eventually took a 25-22 lead going into the locker room despite shooting 36 percent. With the score tied at 27-27 in the opening minutes of the second half, the Lutes scored seven unanswered points. After the Lutes meticulously extended their lead to 47-37 with 11:32 to play, the Wildcats proved tough to put away. Linfield went on a 12-3 run over the next four minutes, capped off with two Courtney McFadden free throws, which pulled the ‘Cats within one at 50-49. PLU answered with two straight jumpers from Amy Spieker, pushing the lead back out to six. Whenever Linfield seemed to have a final spurt, Haag would come up with a big shot to erase all hope. The Lutes outrebounded the Wildcats, 39-32, leading to 11 second-chance points. PLU got its touch back in the second half, shooting 53 percent in the period to finish with 46 percent accuracy for the game.Emily Voorhies provided the muscle inside for the Lutes, scoring 16 points and picking up six rebounds, while point guard Trinity Gibbons led the Lutes with eight rebounds.

LUTES TOP PACIFIC: Kyle Haag and Amy Spieker combined for nine three-point field goals to lead Pacific Lutheran to its fourth straight win, a 67-53 Northwest Conference victory over the host Pacific Boxers on Saturday night. PLU shot 43 percent (26-for-60) from the floor, compared to Pacific's 31 percent (19-for-61). What was more impressive, however, was the Lutes' long-range shooting as they finished the game making 50 percent (10-for-20) from three-point range, while the were 31 percent (6-for-19) on three-point attempts. Haag finished the game as the Lutes leading scorer with 17 points, including a 5-for-9 three-point effort, to go along with seven rebounds and two assists. Haag has made 17 three-point shots on 31 attempts, 55 percent, in the past three games. Spieker continued her solid play of late, finishing with 14 points, while point guard Trinity Gibbons dominated the boards with 14 rebounds. Pacific was ahead for the first few minutes until it relinquished a two-point lead at 14:54 on a three-pointer by Haag, putting the Lutes up 9-8. By the end of the half, Pacific Lutheran had extended its lead to 38-24. The Lutes enjoyed a dominant first half from behind the arc, shooting 58 percent (7-for-12) from three-point range, with four of those baskets coming from Haag. Pacific Lutheran's lead was cut to seven with 6:46 on a three-pointer by Amy Pedersen, but Haag answered back immediately with a three-pointer of her own to keep the Lutes in the driver's seat.

- PLU -