#2 LADY HORNETS PLAY HOST TO SOUTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA STATE

Game #4
#2 Emporia State Lady Hornets (4-0, 0-0 MIAA)
vs. Southwestern Oklahoma Bulldogs (1-2, 0-1 GAC)
Series Record: ESU leads 4-2 Last Meeting: ESU 97, SWOSU 65 (March 14, 2014 in Searcy, Ark.)
Saturday, Nov. 29, 2014 • 3:30 p.m. • Emporia, Kan. • Slaymaker Court/White Auditorium (5,000)
Radio: KVOE 1400AM/96.9FM (3:10 p.m.) Internet Audio: kvoe.com
Television: None Internet Video: None
Up Next: Northwest Missouri • Dec. 3, 2014 • 5:30 p.m. • Emporia, Kan. • Slaymaker Court/White Auditorium
Notes in pdf

NCAA REMATCH   
The #2 Lady Hornets play host to Southwestern Oklahoma State in a rematch of last year's NCAA Central Regional Tournament first round game in Searcy, Ark.  
 
LAST TIME OUT
Amber Vandiver had a career high 24 points and eight blocked shots to go with eight rebounds as #2 Emporia State rolled to a 93-53 regional win over Henderson State on Tuesday in White Auditorium. The Reddies had a 22-19 lead with 9:03 left when the Lady Hornets went on a 13-0 run to take a ten point lead with 5:17 left in the first half.  Henderson State closed to within six at 32-26 when Emporia State had another 13-0 run to push the lead to 45-26 with 2:19 left.  The lead would not drop below 17 points the rest of the night as the Lady Hornets cruised to their 18th straight home court win. Vandiver was joined in double figures by Kelly Moten with 15 points, Merissa Quick with 13 and Megan Holloway with ten points as every Lady Hornet scored and had a rebound for the second straight game.  Addie Lackey had seven of the Lady Hornets 23 assists on the evening and added five steals.

THE COACHES
Jory Collins is 100-31 in his fifth year as the head coach of the Lady Hornets. He has 18 career wins against Top 25 teams with 11 wins in the last 13 match-ups. This is his 14th season on the Lady Hornet coaching staff and Emporia State has advanced to the NCAA tournament in 12 of those seasons. He is 1-0 against Southwestern Oklahoma.
Kelsi Musick is 79-67 in her sixth year at Southwestern Oklahoma. She is 0-1 against Emporia State.

ABOUT THE LADY HORNETS
Emporia State is 4-0 on the season and ranked #2 in this week's WBCA/USA TODAY Sports and D2SIDA Media Poll. Seven players have scored in double figures and five have pulled at least seven rebounds in a game this season. The Lady Hornets are shooting an MIAA best .496 from the field. Merissa Quick and Amber Vandiver combine to average 28.6 points, 13.8 rebounds and 7.5 blocks per game.

ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
Southwestern Oklahoma is 1-2 on the season with losses at #8 Harding and at home to Central Oklahoma. Jennifer Williams is averaging 20.7 points per game while Chelsea Bates contributes 16.3 points and 8.7 rebounds and leads the Dawgs in assists and steals.

THE SERIES    
The Lady Hornets lead the all-time series 4-2 and have won four straight since 2002. The Bulldogs won the first two meetings at neutral sites in 1986 and 1987.

LAST TIME VS. SW OKLAHOMA
The Lady Hornets erupted for 97 points in a 32 point win over Southwestern Oklahoma State in the opening round of the NCAA Central Regional Tournament in Searcy, Ark. Emporia State jumped in front 27-5 to start the game. Emporia State had a 19-1 run after SWOSU cut the lead to 11 in the second half. Laura Patrick had 27 points and hit five three-pointers to lead three Lady Hornets in double figures. Merissa Quick had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds with three blocks.

UP NEXT
Emporia State opens MIAA play against Northwest Mo. on Dec. 3 in White Auditorium.

HOME COOKIN'
The Lady Hornets have won 18 straight and 232 of the last 253 games at home. They have only lost 11 games to unranked NCAA teams in White Auditorium since 1997. The Lady Hornets are 382-89 (.811) overall since 1979 at home and hold the MIAA record for consecutive home wins with 62 set from 1997-2001. Emporia State is 10-4 against top ten teams in White Auditorium.

QUICKEN
Merissa Quick (Sr./Cheney, Kan.) was a Second-Team All-MIAA pick and member of the All-Defensive Team. She was on the NCAA Division II Central Region All-Tournament team and Most Outstanding Player at the MIAA Tournament. She scored 13 points in 12 minutes against Henderson State. She had 14 points seven rebounds and four blocked shots in 18 minutes against Southwestern. She had seven points, seven rebounds and four blocks against Midwestern State in her first start of the year. She came off the bench in the two exhibition games and first regular season game. She had a near triple double with 23 points, nine rebounds and eight blocked shots against Texas Woman's in the first game of the season. She scored 12 points with nine rebounds, three blocked shots and three steals at Kansas State. She had 18 points and six rebounds against Central Missouri and became the first player to earn back to back Most Outstanding Player honors at the MIAA Tournament. She had a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds at Kansas last year. She was an honorable mention All-MIAA selection last season. She scored 11 points and had a career best 20 rebounds against Washburn as a sophomore. She scored a career high 31 points on 13 of 20 shooting against Pittsburg State and added eight rebounds as a sophomore. She had 222 rebounds as a freshman, the most by a Lady Hornet freshmen since Emporia State joined the MIAA. She is sixth in freshman scoring at ESU with 341 points and ranks fourth since joining the MIAA. She is second in career and third single season blocked shots list at Emporia State with 220 blocks in 102 games and 87 last season. She has 1,210 points to rank 19th on the all-time scoring list at Emporia State. She has 710 career rebounds and needs 26 to move into the Lady Hornets' top ten list.
 
I BELIEVE I CAN FLY
Kelly Moten (So./Gary, Ind.) had 15 points and five rebounds against Henderson State. She scored 13 points on six of ten shooting against Southwestern. She had seven points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals at Midwestern State. She opened the season with 14 points and six assists with four boards against Texas Woman's. She scored 15 points with four rebounds and five steals against Evangel. She had seven rebounds and six assists with two blocks and two steals at Kansas State. She scored career highs in back to back games in the MIAA Tournament as she became the fourth freshman to earn All-Tournament honors. She had 17 points, five rebounds and five steals against Central Missouri in the championship game. She scored 15 points with six rebounds and five assists against Southwest Baptist in the semifinals. She had seven points and five rebounds off the bench at Kansas. She scored 262 points to rank 11th on the Lady Hornets all-time freshman scoring list and eighth since moving to the NCAA.

NOTHING GOOD COMES EASILY
Amber Vandiver (Sr./Westminster, Colo.) had career highs of  24 points and eight blocked shots in 22 minutes against Henderson State. She had 13 points on four of five shooting from the field with eight rebounds and four blocks in 16 minutes against Southwestern. She scored 11 points and had five rebounds against Midwestern State. She had nine points and eight rebounds against Texas Woman's. She had 13 points on five of seven shooting with eight rebounds and four blocked shots against Evangel. She had four rebounds and two points at Kansas State. She scored a career high 20 points with seven rebounds against Ft. Hays State in White Auditorium. She had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds against Concordia-St. Paul. She transferred to Emporia State from Boise State and had to sit out one semester before playing. She averaged 6.8 points and 6.2 rebounds as a sophomore in 11 games for the Broncos before transferring. She was an All-State selection in both Idaho and Wyoming for Boise Capital HS as a senior and Laramie HS as a junior.

LEGACY
Addie Lackey (Jr./Hillsboro, Kan.) scored nine points with career highs of seven assists and five steals against Henderson State. She had five assists and two steals against Southwestern. She scored 11 points with three assists at Midwestern State and was two of three from behind the three-point arc. She had six points, five rebounds, four assists and a steal in her regular season collegiate debut against Texas Woman's. She was the leading scorer for the Lady Hornets in two exhibition games at 14.0 points per game.  She had 11 points and six assists against Evangel. She led Emporia State with 17 points at Kansas State and hit three three-pointers. She averaged 14.1 points for Hillsboro HS and was named second-team All-Class by SportsinKansas.com last season. She earned second-team All-Class 3A performer in basketball as a junior after being named honorable mention as a freshman and sophomore. She was a first-team All-Class 3A selection and a three-time state champion in volleyball. Both of her parents played for Emporia State. Her mother Kristi had 500 assists for the Lady Hornets from 1986-90 and her father Mark was a member of the Hornets from 1984-88.  
 
A BURNER NAMED BRUNER
Ashton Bruner (Jr./McPherson, Kan.) had seven rebounds against Henderson State. She scored six points and pulled seven rebounds against Southwestern. She had three rebounds and two assists but did not take a shot against Midwestern State. She filled the stat sheet against Texas Woman's. She was perfect from the field and free throw line for four points and had six rebounds with four assists in 19 minutes. She pulled eight rebounds with five points and two steals against Evangel. She had six rebounds and two steals at Kansas State. She is in her first year at Emporia State after transferring from Barton CC. She averaged 11.5 points and 7.4 rebounds per game as the Cougars went 20-13 last season. She averaged 12.3 points and 6.5 rebounds as a senior for McPherson HS and earned second-team All-Class 4A honors from the KBCA. She was a first-team All-Ark Valley Chisholm Trail Division II pick and led the Bullpups to a 24-1 State Championship season her senior year.  

FROM KANSAS TO KANSAS CITY TO EMPORIA
Kelsey Barnwell (Jr./Kansas, Okla.) had four assists against Southwestern. She hit three of four three-pointers for nine points at Midwestern State. She also had three rebounds and an assist against the Mustangs. She scored 12 points on five of eight shooting with a pair of three-pointers against Texas Woman's. She scored ten points against Evangel. She had two steals and two assists at Kansas State. She is in her first year with the Lady Hornets after two years at UMKC. She played in 26 games with 14 starts for the Kangaroos, averaging 5.3 points and 2.6 rebounds per game last season. She was third on the team with 45 assists and had a team best 1.55-1 assist to turnover ratio. She led Kansas (Okla.) HS to a combined 59-7 record in her three years, including an Oklahoma 3A State Championship in 2009-10 and a runner-up finish as a junior. She was a three-time All-State selection by the Tulsa World and the Daily Oklahoman, twice earning first-team honors.

FLOTTASTIC
Kathryn Flott (So./Olpe, Kan.) is back after sitting out the last two years with knee injuries. She scored nine points wtih eight rebounds in 14 minutes against Southwestern. She is two of three from the field in 29 minutes of action in the first two games. She had six points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals against Evangel. She played seven minutes at Kansas State. She had a career high 21 points against Pittsburg State in the 2012 NCAA Central Regionaql Championship game. She had her first career double-double with 14 points and ten rebounds against Mo. Southern. She went three of four from behind the three point line against the Lions after missing her first 15 attempts of the season. She led Olpe HS to a 1A State Championship her senior season and was named 1A first team All-State by they KBCA. She was a First-Team KBCA All-State selection in Class 2A as she led the Lady Eagles to an undefeated state championship season as a junior. She was a second-team All-Class selection by the Wichita Eagle.
 
HOLLOWAY WITH THE FALL AWAY
Megan Holloway (So./Salina, Kan.) scored a season high ten points and was perfect from the field and free throw line against Henderson State. She is one of four Lady Hornets who started a game last season. She started and scored eight points at Neb.-Kearney last year. She scored 11 points in her Lady Hornet regular season debut against Indianapolis. She was a first-team All-Class 5A selection as a senior after earning second-team honors as a junior. She was a two-time first-team All-Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail league pick. She averaged 14.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists for the Cougars as a senior.

KRAMER!
Jacee Kramer (Fr./Winchester, Kan.) had a career high 17 points and six assists against Southwestern. She scored six points on a pair of three-pointers at Midwestern State. She had three rebounds and two steals at Kansas State. She averaged 26.0 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 4.3 steals per game last year for the Jefferson County North HS. She was a first-team All-Class by KansasSports.com as a senior. She earned first-team All-Class 2A honors last year and has led JCNHS to the state championship game each of the last three years, winning the state title in 2011-12.  

MILLER'S CROSSING
Kyrstie Miller (Fr./Holton, Kan.) scored six points with five assists, four rebounds, three blocks and a steal against Henderson State. She had five points and five rebounds in 15 minutes against Southwestern. She was perfect from the field including a two of two effort from behind the three-point line for eight points at Midwestern State. She scored eight points with four rebounds and two assists at Kansas State. Her three-pointer with 1:06 left gave Emporia State a 50-49 lead. She averaged 15.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game as a senior for Holton HS. She was named honorable mention All-State as a freshman and sophomore before earning first-team All-Class 4A honors as a junior and senior. The Wildcats played in two state championship games during her career, winning the state title in 2011 and finishing third last season. She scored 1,060 points and had 440 steals in 100 career varsity games.  

ALWAYS BE THERE
Whitney Gordon (Jr./Marion, Kan.) had four rebounds and three assists against Henderson State. She had a career high nine rebounds in 14 minutes against Southwestern. She pulled three rebounds in six minutes against Texas Woman's. She started against Evangel and had four rebounds in eight minutes at Kansas State. She is in her first year at Emporia State after transferring from the University of Wyoming. She played in 26 games during her two years with the Cowgirls. She was a three-time Honorable Mention KBCA All-State selection at Marion HS. She was named All-Area by the Hutchinson News and was a two-time First Team All-League honoree during her career. She averaged a double-double her last two years for the Lady Warriors at 12 points and 11 rebounds as a senior and 14 points and 11 rebounds as a junior.

COSTLEY RETURN
Brooke Costley (Fr.-RS/Mexico, Mo.) is out indefinitely with a knee injury. She made her Lady Hornet debut at Kansas State after she red-shirted her first year with a knee injury. She averaged 10.3 points and 3.5 assists per game and holds the Mexico HS single season records for assists and free throw percentage. She has earned All-North Central Missouri Conference honors all four years.

BRING IT ON    
The Lady Hornets are 63-42 (.600) against Top 25 teams since 1997-98.  Emporia State is 25-9 (.735) at home against Top 25 teams since 1997. The Lady Hornets have 23 wins against Top 10 teams, including four against #1 teams in the last six seasons. Emporia State is 23-14 (.622) in neutral site games with top 25 foes since 1997.  

SUSTAINED EXCELLENCE
Emporia State won their first national championship in 2010, 12 years after making their first appearance in the national title game. The Lady Hornets are ranked second in this week's USA Today Sports/WBCA Coaches Poll, the 18th straight year the Lady Hornets received votes in the preseason poll.  The Lady Hornets have opened the season in the top 15 nationally in 13 of the last 18 years. The Lady Hornets have 18 straight winning seasons, the longest active streak in the MIAA. They have been in 18 straight MIAA tournaments, the second longest active streak in the MIAA. The Lady Hornets have won seven MIAA regular season championships in the last 16 years. They have made the NCAA Tournament 16 times in the last 18 years and their 32-15 record in the tourney is ranked fourth among active Division II schools in total wins. Emporia State has made five Elite Eight trips, tied with Delta State, Northern Kentucky and North Dakota for the most since 1997.

LET'S HANG SOME MORE
Aneta Kausaite, Jurgita Kausaite, Tara Holloway-Churchill, Emily Bloss-Carpenter, Michelle Stueve-Corpening, Cassondra Boston and Alli Volkens have had their jerseys retired in White Auditorium for earning All-American honors at Emporia State, graduating and playing at least two years for the Lady Hornets.

ALL-TIME ALL-MIAA TOURNAMENT TEAM
Lady Hornets Emily Bloss, Tara Holloway and Jurgita Kausaite were named to the ten person All-Time All-MIAA Tournament Team by a panel of past and current sports information directors and media members prior to the 2007 Tournament. Bloss averaged 17 points in her twelve tournament games, including a tournament record 76 points as a senior. Holloway scored 151 points in her career. Kausaite scored 120 points in six tournament games. Emporia State's is 26-12 all-time in MIAA Tournament play and the Lady Hornets are the last team to win four straight MIAA titles.

MIAA TOURNEY EXCELLENCE
Emporia State has won the last two MIAA Tournament Championships and are the first team to have two different streaks of at least four straight championship games.  The Lady Hornets won four straight championships from 1998-2001 and have been in the last four title games.  

NEWBIES
Kelly Moten became just the fourth freshman to earn All-Tournament honors at the MIAA Tournament.  All four freshmen were Lady Hornets and Moten is the first to earn the honors coming off the bench.

LADY HORNETS NCAA HISTORY
The Lady Hornets have made the NCAA Tournament for 16 times in the last 18 years and their 32-15 record in the tourney is ranked fourth all-time among active Division II schools in total tourney wins. Emporia State won the 2010 National Championship, were national runners-up in 1998, advanced to the Final Four in 1999 and were also in the Elite Eight in 2000 and 2006.   
 
ROAD WARRIORS
Emporia State is 215-83 (.721) away from home, 76-25 (.752) in neutral site games and 47-12 (.797) against non-MIAA teams at neutral sites since 1997-98 with four of the losses in the Elite Eight. The Lady Hornets have gone on the road to defeat the #1 ranked team in the nation twice in regional tournaments and have eliminated the host team in five regional tournaments. The Lady Hornets are 110-43 (.719) on the road in MIAA league play since 1997-98.

NOT SUCH A HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
Concordia-St. Paul's victory over Harding last year meant the host team for the NCAA Regional the Lady Hornets compete in has won the tournament only once in the last ten years. The first eight years of the streak were in the South Central Region. In that same time, the host team has advanced to the regional final only twice with Emporia State defeating Washburn in 2006 in Lee Arena and West Texas A&M defeating Central Oklahoma in 2009 in Canyon, Texas.

HERE THEY COME
Emporia State has played in front of at least 1,000 fans in White Auditorium in every home game since January 2, 1999 - a span of 225 games. Last season, the Lady Hornets averaged 1,847 per game to rank fourth nationally. The Lady Hornets national championship game drew a standing room only crowd of 3,405 to the St. Joseph Civic Arena in 2010. The Lady Hornets averaged a school record 2,684 fans over 13 home dates in 2005-06 to finish third in the nation and led the nation with an average attendance of 2,348 fans for their 15 home dates in 2004-05. Emporia State has been in the top six of the nation in attendance in each of the last 17 years.

ON THE AIR
The Lady Hornets have been seen on national television four times in the last 14 years and are 3-1 in those games following their 65-53 national championship win over Ft. Lewis on ESPN2 in 2010. ESU's 97-94 overtime victory over then #1 Gannon was shown on ESPNU. The Lady Hornets 74-67 victory over Washburn in 2007 was televised nation wide on CSTV. It was the first time a basketball game was televised nationally from White Auditorium and the first time an MIAA regular season basketball game, men or women, had been telecast nationwide. The Lady Hornets national championship game against North Dakota in 1998 was seen on ESPN. The Turnpike Tussle game against Washburn in White Auditorium on Jan. 15, 2011 was available across Mid-America on the MIAA Broadcasting Network while the Lady Hornets appearances in the last four MIAA Tournament Championship Games have all been televised by the MIAA Network.

BY THE NUMBERS
The Lady Hornets have topped the 100-point barrier 66 times and have eclipsed the 110 point mark 27 times in their history. Since 1997-98, the Lady Hornets are 246-2 (.992) when scoring at least 80 points. The first loss was to North Dakota, 87-81 in the 1999 Final Four and the second came at West Texas A&M, 86-83 in the 2009 NCAA South Central Regional Semifinals. Emporia State was 167-22 (.884) in the previous 23 seasons when scoring at least 80 points. Conversely Emporia State is 133-2 (.985) all-time when holding opponents to 50 points or less.

LOCK DOWN
The Lady Hornets have not allowed a team to score 100 points against them since a 106-75 loss to West Texas A&M on Nov. 29, 1991 a streak of 705 games. Emporia State led the nation in scoring defense during the 2000-01 season, allowing just 50.6 points per game to rank 20th all-time in single season defense in NCAA Division II.  
 
LADY HORNET SUCCESS ON THE COURT...
The Lady Hornets have the best record in MIAA play in the 21st century. ESU is 216-63 (.774) in MIAA play since the 2000 season and 377-100 (.790) overall in that time. The Lady Hornets are even better if you add two more years to the equation. Since the 1997-98 season, Emporia State is 247-64 (.794) in MIAA play and 440-104 (.809) overall. The Lady Hornets have been ranked in the top ten of the ESPN/USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll 159 times, the most of any current NCAA Division II school.  Emporia State has been to 16 NCAA Tournaments, made the Regional Championship or "Sweet 16" ten times, has made five trips to the Elite Eight, three to the Final Four, two national title game appearances and won the 2010 NCAA Division II National Championship. The Lady Hornets have won eight MIAA Championships and are the only team to win four straight undisputed (untied regular season and tournament) MIAA Championships pulling the trick from 1998-2001. They have been in four straight MIAA Tournament Championships games, been to 11 of the last 17 MIAA Tournament Title Games and won six tourney titles.

...AND IN THE CLASSROOM
Lady Hornets have been honored as Academic All-Americans three times since joining the NCAA. Michelle Stueve was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America second-team in 2007-08 and was a three-time Academic All-District VII performer. Emily Bloss was a three-time Academic All-American and was named the Academic All-American of the Year in 2001.

STREAKS AND SUCH
•The Lady Hornets have hit a three pointer in 268 straight games dating back to a zero for 14 effort at Washburn on Feb. 15, 2006.
•The Lady Hornets have held their last 705 opponents to under 100 points dating back to a 106-75 loss to West Texas A&M in Hays, Kan. on Nov. 29, 1991.
•The Lady Hornets have won 22 straight non-conference games in White Auditorium dating back to a 58-51 loss to Harris-Stowe on December 8, 2007.
•The Lady Hornets have won 18 straight games in White Auditorium dating back to a 66-56 loss to Northeastern State on February 23, 2013.
•The Lady Hornets have won at least ten home games in 18 straight seasons.
•The Lady Hornets ended the longest winning streak in NCAA Division II history (51 games) with their 61-59 overtime victory over Washburn on March 13, 2006 in the South Central Regional final and the longest single season winning streak (37 games) with their 97-94 overtime victory over Gannon on March 24, 2010 in the national semifinals.
•The Lady Hornets have defeated the host team in three of the last four regional tournaments they have played in (at Washburn 65-58 in 2013; at Washburn 71-65 in 2012; at West Texas A&M 76-69 in 2010).
•The Lady Hornets won six straight games against nationally ranked teams prior to falling in the 2013 regional championship game, the longest streak since winning seven straight over the 1999-2000 through 2000-01 seasons and the longest single season streak since winning seven straight on the way to the 1998 national championship game.

END GAME
The Lady Hornets are 248-5 (.980) when leading at the 5:00 mark since the start of the 2004-05 season and are 415-11 (.974) since 1997 with a lead at the 5:00 mark.  

TIP-INS
• The Lady Hornets have won 20 games in 12 straight seasons, 17 times in the last 18 years and 22 times in the program's 38 year history.
• The Lady Hornets have won 25 games ten times in school history.
• The Lady Hornets have won 30 games four times in school history.
• The Lady Hornets are 801-365 (.686) overall in 41 years of action.
• The Lady Hornets are the only team to appear in the NCAA top twenty season records for scoring offense (17th - 90.0 in 1998; 8th - 91.3 in 1999; 18th - 89.9 in 2000) and scoring defense (18th - 50.6 in 2001).
• The Lady Hornets have had nine of the last 16 MIAA MVPs, five of the last 12 Freshmen of the Year and won the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year award in 2011-12.