Women's Basketball | 3/4/2010 10:48:10 AM

[DII season stat leaders] [DII career stat leaders]

THIS WEEK IN WOLVES BASKETBALL
Saturday, Mar. 6 - 2:00 pm PST
Senior Day
New P.E. Building - Monmouth, OR
Western Oregon (11-18, 6-9 GNAC)
vs. Saint Martin's (10-15, 4-10 GNAC*)
(*One game pending - at CWU, 3/4)

MEDIA INFORMATION
Live Video: Saturday's game is free with membership at http://www.pennatlantic.com/. Darrell Aune and Robin Andrea will call the action.
Live Stats: Saturday's game is free at http://www.wouwolves.com/.
[Live stats] [Live video]

SAYING GOODBYE
This week, Western Oregon will bid farewell to three seniors: forward Katie Torland (Burns, Ore./Burns), guard Shayla Corder (Winchester, Ore./Roseburg), and forward A.J. Hawk (Ontario, Ore./Ontario). The three seniors have been huge contributors to the program's resurgence. Torland and Corder have won the most career games (27) in three years since WOU joined the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.

KATIE TORLAND
Forward Katie Torland leaves Western Oregon as one of the greatest players in school history at the NCAA Division II level (WOU was an NAIA member until 2000). In her three years as a Wolf, she has amassed 1,238 points (15th-most in GNAC history), 556 rebounds, 121 assists, and 117 steals. She has 37 ten-point games and 24 twenty-or-more-point games to her name. She has played in 81 career games, starting 80, and her career scoring average of 15.3 points is a WOU DII-best. Torland is a career 41-percent shooter from the field, 36-percent from beyond the arc, and a remarkable 82-percent from the free throw line. She has made 394 field goals, 108 treys, and 342 free throws in her WOU career. Her career free throw percentage and free throws made both rank first in WOU DII history.

Torland scored a career-high 29 points against Western Washington last season; she matched that total this season against Central Washington. She grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds against Cal State Monterey Bay last season. She had a career-high six assists this season against Saint Martin's, and had a career-high six steals against Cal State Stanislaus during the 2007-2008 season. Torland made at least one free throw in 21 consecutive games, starting against Seattle University on Feb. 28, 2008, and ending against Alaska Fairbanks on Jan. 29, 2009. She also made at least one three-pointer in eight straight games, starting against Mesa State on Nov. 21, 2009, and ending against Adams State on Jan. 1, 2010.

Torland was a First-Team All-GNAC selection last season after averaging 17.7 points and 7.2 rebounds per contest. During her tenure at Western, she was also named to seven consecutive all-tournament teams. She set a GNAC record this season for free throws attempted in a game (20 vs. Northwest Nazarene, 1/7/10); she tied the GNAC record for free throws made (16) in the same contest. Torland carries a 3.26 G.P.A. as an exercise science major with a minor in health. She was recently named to the 2009-2010 GNAC Academic All-Conference Team. She will graduate next year.

“Katie has had an outstanding three-year career as a member of our program,” WOU head coach Greg Bruce said. “In my opinion, she has been the best player in Western Oregon DII history considering not only her stats but also her off-the-court contributions; she has provided us with great leadership and has been a tremendous role model to the younger players.

“She has been our hardest worker, evident by how much her game has improved since she stepped on campus. For the last two years, Katie has been WOU women's basketball, and her ability and work ethic have been a major part of the program's turn-around.”

SHAYLA CORDER
Guard Shayla Corder will finish her three-year WOU career having been an integral part of the program's amazing turnaround. She has 500 career points, 191 rebounds, and 101 assists. She has played in 79 games (38 starts) as a Wolf, and has made 178 field goals, 39 three-pointers, and 105 free throws. In her time at WOU, Corder has 15 ten-point games and three twenty-or-more-point games. She ranks in both career field goal percentage (39-percent) and free throw percentage (71-percent). Corder was named to one all-tournament team during her Western career.

Corder set her career high in points (21) last season against Regis University. Her career-high 10 rebounds came last season against Cal Poly Pomona. She set her career-high in assists (8) this season against Mesa State, and her career-high in steals (4) last season against Saint Martin's.

She carries a 3.57 G.P.A. with a major in communication studies and a minor in business. She was named to her second consecutive GNAC Academic All-Conference Team this season. She will graduate this March.

“Shayla has been a great example for our players with her work ethic in the classroom,” Bruce said. “She is the true definition of a student-athlete.

“Shayla has such a diverse skill set that she has been able to play positions 1 through 4 for us, sacrificing her individual game in the process. She came here with the goal of helping to turn our program back around, and she has been a big part of that happening.”

AJ HAWK
Forward AJ Hawk spent two years as a member of the Western women's basketball team, becoming known as the team's inspirational leader for her unselfish contributions to the team. She played in 34 career games, starting 10. She is a career 34-percent shooter (36-for-107), and has a career 72-percent average from the charity stripe (23-for-32). Hawk has 99 career points and 79 career rebounds. She has also taken the most charges of any Western player in head coach Greg Bruce's four-year tenure.

Hawk scored a career-high 12 points last season against Alaska Fairbanks. She has grabbed a career-high eight rebounds twice, once last season against Western Washington and once this season against San Francisco State.

Hawk carries a 3.39 G.P.A. with a major in business and a minor in sports management. She was recently named to the 2009-2010 GNAC Academic All-Conference Team. She will graduate this June.

“It's been a pleasure to have A.J. in the program,” Bruce said. “She came to practice everyday with the idea that she was going to do whatever it took to make herself and the team better.

“A.J. is a team-first player and has been extremely coachable. Her contributions don't necessarily stand out in the box score, but she did all the little things that are necessary for a team to be successful. She is the unquestioned leader in charges taken, which, to me, is the ultimate sacrifice to the 'team' concept.”

RECAPPING THE WOLVES
For the first time this season, Western failed to earn a split in conference play, losing Thursday at Northwest Nazarene 40-76 and Saturday at Montana State Billings 64-69. WOU still retains sole possession of fifth place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference at 6-9; Saint Martin's and Montana State Billings sit two-and-a-half games back. WOU is now 11-18 overall. This season is the first since 2002-2003 in which WOU notched double-figure victories (13 in 2002-2003). Western's six conference victories are the most since 2003-2004 (six wins); the Wolves reached their first five conference wins in 10 outings this season, the quickest since 2003-2004 (also 10 games).

LAST WEEK
In Thursday's game, Katie Torland's 11 points and season high-tying 12 rebounds were not enough as No. 5 regionally-ranked Northwest Nazarene outscored Western Oregon 46-11 in the second half en route to a 76-40 victory at the Johnson Sports Center.

Western Oregon's first second-half field goal was a Jamie Richardson three at the 13:29 mark; the shot ended a 15-0 run that put the Crusaders in the driver's seat for the remainder of the contest. WOU was 2-of-18 (11-percent) in the second stanza, and the 11 second-half points were the fewest since Dec. 12, 2004 (WOU scored 11 first-half points against Oregon Tech). The Wolves led by as many as six points in the first half, but a last-second jumper by Kristin Hein gave NNU a one-point halftime lead (30-29) they would never relinquish.

“We were really competitive in the first half,” Western Oregon head coach Greg Bruce said. “NNU upped the ante in the second half, and we failed to match their intensity.

In Saturday's game, WOU fell 64-69 to Montana State Billings in Alterowitz Gym.

Western Oregon was led by senior forward Katie Torland's 11 points, eight rebounds, and three steals. Freshman guard Hannah Whitsett scored all 11 of her points in the second half; she also hit three three-pointers. Junior guard Sarah McNamee came off the bench to lead MSUB with 18 points (6-of-7 from the field). Also in double-figures for Montana were sophomore guard Kalli Stanhope (17) and sophomore forward Callie Kautzmann (13).

The first half was a back-and-forth affair that saw the Wolves take a five-point advantage with 5:19 remaining, but the Yellowjackets would battle back to take a 34-31 lead into the locker room. The second half was a different story, however, as WOU never led. The Yellowjackets had their largest lead of the night (14 points) with 7:24 left to play, and they led by double-digits from the 9:10 mark until the 4:48 mark. A late flurry of baskets by Western resulted in the final six-point margin.

WOU played a solid game statistically; they won the battle on the boards 36 to 33 and had 19 offensive rebounds. The Wolves only turned the ball over 11 times while forcing 23, and they recorded nine steals. Western's bench outscored Montana's 23 to 18, and they had 21 points off turnovers compared to 11 for MSUB. However, WOU shot only 32-percent (20-63) from the field and 68-percent (19-28) from the charity stripe. Montana shot 52-percent and 94-percent, respectively.

“It just goes to show that even when you dominate a game statistically, the result is still very much dependent on how many shots you put in the basket,” WOU head coach Greg Bruce said. “We missed way too many easy looks, and I was disappointed in our offensive execution considering where we are in the season.”

MOST RECENT WESTERN OREGON STARTERS

Feb. 27 at Montana State Billings, L 64-69

Total at Montana State Billings/Season average

Player                      Pts.          Reb.         Ast.         FG                 3-FG

G L. Clifford           8/5.5        2/3.1        1/1.3        3-10/.355       2-4/.238

G S. Zahler              8/8.2        3/4.1        2/1.8        3-10/.365       0-2/.413

G S. Corder             6/5.3        4/2.3        2/1.6        1-6/.362         0-2/.300

F K. Torland           11/16.0    8/7.0        4/1.6        3-14/.396       0-0/.382

F D. Bellando          8/4.0        3/2.7        2/0.9        3-7/.488         0-0/.000

 

SCOUTING THE SAINT MARTIN'S SAINTS
Member: NCAA Division II
Conference: Great Northwest Athletic Conference
2009-2010 Record: 10-15 (4-10 GNAC)
Series Record: SMU leads 24-11 (WOU is 8-11 in SMU)
Last Meeting: WOU 67, SMU 80 (2/4/10 at SMU)

The Saints of SMU come into Saturday's contest against Western having lost four of their last six, all by double-digits. Their last win, an 80-74 victory, came Feb. 18 against Alaska Fairbanks at home; they have not won a road game since Jan. 23, also against Alaska Fairbanks. Saint Martin's leads the conference in free throw percentage (79-percent) and are third in three-point percentage (41-percent) and fourth in offensive rebounds (12.9 per game). The Saints are led by junior forward Dara Zack (16.0 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 3.0 apg), senior forward Krissy Bassett (13.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg), and senior guard Jamey Gelhar (10.6 ppg, 2.0 apg).

This is the second meeting of the season between the Wolves and the Saints. Western Oregon never led in the contest, and the Saints led by double-figures the entire second half. WOU junior guard Sara Zahler scored a career-high 23 points to go along with seven rebounds, and freshman guard Lorrie Clifford (11) and senior forward Katie Torland (10) also scored in double-digits. Saint Martin's was led by Zack's 26 points and seven rebounds; Gelhar added 18 points and Bassett scored 10 points and grabbed seven caroms.

MOST RECENT SAINT MARTIN'S STARTERS

Feb. 25 vs. Seattle Pacific, L 55-66

Total vs. Seattle Pacific/Season average

Player                      Pts.          Reb.         Ast.         FG                 3-FG

G R. Mielke            2/7.5        0/2.3        2/2.6        1-5/.404         0-2/.475

F D. Zack                14/16.0    9/8.8        2/3.0        6-11/.488       2-3/.458

G J. Gelhar              11/10.6    1/2.0        3/2.0        4-15/.416       1-7/.482

F K. Hawkins         6/4.2        7/4.7        1/1.0        2-6/.330         0-0/.000

F K. Bassett            15/13.5    6/5.4        1/1.7        4-9/.411         2-4/.326

 

THE TALE OF THE TAPE

(GNAC ranking in parenthesis)

                                WOU                  SMU

Points                      62.3 (7)               65.6 (5)

Points allowed        62.2 (5)               67.6 (7)

Rebounds                34.1 (9)               36.3 (6)

Assists                    11.1 (8)               12.7 (7)

Steals                       9.1 (5)                 7.4 (8)

Blocks                     1.7 (8)                 1.3 (9)

Turnovers               20.3 (8)               19.2 (5)

FG pct.                   .382 (7)               .408 (5)

3-point pct.             .332 (5)               .409 (3)

FT pct.                    .772 (3)               .787 (1)

 

GNAC STANDINGS

(West Region ranking in parenthesis)

                                                Conf.       Overall          Home        Away        Neutral

Seattle Pacific (2)                    13-1         22-3               12-0           6-2             4-1

Western Washington (3)         13-2         22-4               12-0           8-3             2-1

Alaska Anchorage (4)             12-2         22-3               13-1           7-2             2-0

Northwest Nazarene (6)         8-6           18-7               12-3           4-3             2-1

Western Oregon               6-9           11-18             6-6             3-8             2-4

Montana State Billings           4-10         11-14             8-6             3-7             0-1

Saint Martin's                         4-10         10-15             8-5             2-7             0-3

Central Washington             3-11         6-18               4-6             2-6             0-6

Alaska Fairbanks                    1-13         2-23               2-10           0-9             0-4

TEAM NOTES
Western is allowing 62.2 points per game this season, the fewest since 2001-2002 (61.3 ppg allowed). This season is the also the first time since 2001-2002 that WOU is outscoring their opponents. WOU is allowing opponents to shoot 42-percent on average, which is the lowest since 2003-2004 (40-percent shooting allowed). Opponents' 33-percent shooting from long range is the lowest since the 2004-2005 season (32-percent shooting allowed). Western is giving up 35.6 rebounds per game, which is the fewest since 2004-2005 (32.6 per game). The Wolves are averaging 9.1 steals per game, the most since the 2001-2002 season (12.2 per game). This is also the first time since 2001-2002 that WOU has a positive turnover margin (+0.72 this season; +4.74 in 2001-2002)... The 77-percent mark from the charity stripe is the highest in WOU DII history, but ranks third in the GNAC this season. Western is averaging 6.3 made three-pointers per game, the second highest in DII program history (7.1 in 2006-2007).