Nov. 23, 2004
Women's Basketball Notes - Nov. 23, 2004
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West Coast Conference Women's Basketball Release
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Game No. 2 - PROVIDENCE COLLEGEAirport University Inn Thanksgiving TournamentFriday, November 26 - 5 p.m. (PST)University Arena (18,018) - Albuquerque, NM
GONZAGA UNIVERSITY BULLDOGS (1-0, 0-0 West Coast)F - 13 Ashley Burke, 6-1, Sr., North Vancouver, BC (10.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 3.0 apg)F - 30 Ashley Anderson, 6-0, Jr., Enterprise, OR (9.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.0 apg)F - 44 Anne Bailey, 6-0, Jr., Snohomish, WA (10.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.0 apg)G - 10 Shannon Mathews, 5-6, Sr., Riverside, CA (11.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 9.0 apg)G - 32 Raeanna Jewell, 5-7, Sr., Veradale, WA (14.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.0 apg)HEAD COACH: Kelly Graves (University of New Mexico, 1988)GONZAGA RECORD: 53-65 (5th year); CAREER RECORD: 119-94 (8th year)
PROVIDENCE COLLEGE FRIARS (0-2, 0-0 Big East)F - 24 Shauna Snyder, 5-10, So., Albuquerque, NM (11.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 0.0 apg)F - 42 Haley Pelton, 6-3, Fr., Lancaster, PA (5.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 0.0 apg)C - 25 Kristen Brown, 6-0, Fr., River Vale, NJ (8.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.0 apg)G - 2 Kristina Baugh, 5-7, So., Boston, MA (11.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 4.5 apg)G - 22 Allie Gard, 5-7, Jr., Colorado Springs, CO (4.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 3.5 apg)HEAD COACH: Susan Yow (Elon College, 1976)PC RECORD: 13-43 (3rd year); CAREER RECORD: 235-339 (22nd year)
Game No. 3 - NEW MEXICO OR MISSOURI Airport University Inn Thanksgiving Tournament Saturday, November 27 - 5 p.m. or 7 p.m. (PST) University Arena (18,018) - Albuquerque, NM Consolation/Championship Game
BULLDOGS HEAD TO GRAVES OLD STOMPING GROUNDS: Gonzaga travels to Albuquerque, New Mexico this weekend to play in the first of two regular-season tournaments. The Bulldogs will open the tournament against Providence College before facing either the University of Missouri or host University of New Mexico on Saturday night. This is the second time that Gonzaga has played in a tournament in Albuquerque, the Bulldogs going 1-1 in the Southwest Airlines Lobo Classic in December of 1999. The tournament will also be a homecoming for Bulldogs head coach Kelly Graves who played basketball at the University of New Mexico from 1986-88 earning All-Western Athletic Conference Academic honors in 1987. Graves also started his coaching career as graduate assistant for the Lobos men's team during the 1988-89 season.
HEAD COACH Kelly Graves: Kelly Graves is in his fifth season as the head coach of the Gonzaga University Bulldogs looking to take the team to back-to-back post-season berths for the first time in the Division I history of the program. Graves has compiled a 53-65 record at Gonzaga but has built the Bulldogs into a West Coast Conference title contender with consecutive second place finishes in the league. In 2003 he was named the WCC Coach of the Year after leading the Bulldogs to a seven game turnaround. Last season the Bulldogs lost in the WCC title game and advanced to the Women's NIT, the first post-season appearance for Gonzaga in ten seasons. Prior to taking over the Bulldogs program Graves built Saint Mary's College into a WCC power with two post-season appearances. His career record is 119-91 including a 51-45 WCC mark.
SCOUTING THE FRIARS: Gonzaga faces Providence College out of the Big East Conference to open play in the Airport University Inn Thanksgiving Tournament on Friday night. This will be first meeting between the two schools and the second contest for the Bulldogs against a Big East school. Gonzaga lost to the University of Pittsburgh during the 1994 NIT. The Friars enter the weekend with an 0-2 mark after losses at Holy Cross and at home to Fordham. Albuquerque native Shauna Snyder and guard Kristina Baugh lead PC in scoring with both players averaging 11 points a game.
LOBOS/TIGERS ON THE HORIZON: Gonzaga will face either the University of New Mexico or the University of Missouri on Saturday night. The consolation game is set for a 5 p.m. start while the tournament championship will start at 7 p.m. (PST). The host New Mexico Lobos enter the event after a Tuesday night game at Oklahoma State University. New Mexico won their season opener over in-state rival New Mexico State University, 57-44. Katie Montgomery led the Lobos offense with 14 points while Abbie Letz chipped in with 11. The Missouri Tigers come to Albuquerque after a second-place finish in the University of Iowa season-opening tournament. Missouri went 1-1 in the event beating Northern Illinois before a 19-point setback against Iowa. LaToya Bond is the Tigers top player with 19.5 points per game to open the season. This will be Gonzaga's first meeting against both schools.
HAWK BREAKS LOOSE: Sophomore Stephanie Hawk had the first of what the Gonzaga coaching staff hopes are many breakout nights on Saturday as she set career highs with 11 points and 6 rebounds against Utah Valley State. The Bulldogs rolled over the Wolverines 87-41 with Hawk one of five Gonzaga players in double-figures. Hawk showed signs of having a big year when she poured in 16 points against Lewis-Clark State College during the Bulldogs lone exhibition game. Hawk's previous career-high was 10 points against the University of Utah while she picked up 3 rebounds on two different occasions last season.
BULLDOGS GET A VOTE: The Gonzaga women's basketball team received its first taste of national attention this season with the Bulldogs listed among the teams also receiving votes in the Associated Press poll. Gonzaga was given one vote joining Mississippi State University and Iowa State University as the last teams listed.
DEFENSIVE SHOWCASE: The Bulldogs put on a defensive clinic in the second half of their season opening win over Utah Valley State. After allowing Utah Valley State to shoot 42 percent in the opening half, Gonzaga clamped down allowing only 7 second-half buckets as the Wolverines shot a meager 19 percent for the half. Gonzaga forced 9 second half turnovers and picked up 22 defensive rebounds as UVSC went 7-for-36 from the field including 1-for-8 from 3-point range. The Bulldogs limited the Wolverines to 28 percent shooting for the game as Gonzaga won the game 87-41.
WELL ROUNDED POINT: Gonzaga senior point guard Shannon Mathews turned in a well rounded performance on Saturday night as she scored 11 points, passed out 9 assists and picked up 3 steals. Mathews currently ranks in the Gonzaga career Top 10 for each of those categories as she passed Lisa Vestal (1983-86) for 10th place on the Bulldogs career list. Mathews is now charging towards 1,000-point plateau as she has 961 career points. Mathews also moved up one spot to fourth on the career steals list with 164. However Mathews biggest run for the record book this season will come in the assists category. She currently ranks second on the GU career charts with 412. The Bulldogs career leader is Amy Simpson who passed out 439 assists from 1982-86. Mathew should also crack the West Coast Conference career Top 10 for assists with a solid season at the point. Marlee Webb of Loyola Marymount is currently No. 10 with 441 assists from 1992-96.
KANE CLEARED: Gonzaga back-up point guard Rachel Kane has been cleared to join the Bulldogs team after missing the first game against Utah Valley State. Kane suffered a torn ACL and MCL against the University of San Francisco during the opening portion of the 2004 WCC schedule. Kane may see limited action during this weekend's tournament in New Mexico and is expected to be back up to full speed by the Bulldogs tournament appearance at Arizona State.
SCHRAMM TO REDSHIRT: Gonzaga freshman post player Sarah Schramm will redshirt the 2004-05 season after suffering a stress fracture in her hand during a recent Bulldogs practice. Schramm scored four points during the Bulldogs exhibition win over Lewis-Clark State and did not play against Utah Valley State.
JEWELL CARRIES EARLY LOAD: Senior Raeanna Jewell carried the Bulldogs offense during the first-half of their season opening win over Utah Valley State. Jewell scored 10 of her game-high 14 points during the opening 20 minutes as Gonzaga held a 33-24 lead over the Wolverines. Jewell scored only four points in the final half but the Bulldogs did not need her offense at that point as the defense limited UVSC to only seven made field goals and 17 total points.
BURKE INCREASES STREAK TO 16: Senior Ashley Burke increased her consecutive game streak of scoring in double-figures to 16 games with the Bulldogs win over Utah Valley State. Burke extended the streak with a pair of free throws with 5:04 remaining as she scored 10 points to go along with 9 rebounds. The last time Burke failed to score in double-figures was on Jan. 10, 2004 during the Bulldogs win over Loyola Marymount. Last season she reached double-figures in 27 of 30 games.
BULLDOGS ANNOUNCE RADIO PACKAGE: The Bulldogs will have a minimum of 11 games broadcast on the radio during the 2005 season. Starting with the Bulldogs opener against Utah Valley State on Nov. 20, Gonzaga will have 10 regular-season games and all post-season games broadcast on the Bulldogs radio network - KGA 1510 AM in the Spokane area.
LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION: In addition to basketball on the radio Gonzaga will also have several games broadcast on television starting with the Bulldogs Dec. 18 game against Northwest foe - the University of Idaho. The game against the Vandals will be broadcast on Spokane station KHQ marking the second time women's basketball has been broadcast on the Bulldogs television network. Gonzaga will also appear on Fox Sports Net as part of the West Coast Conference package. That game for Gonzaga will be on January 15 at Pepperdine. The game will be broadcast live at 7 p.m. on FSN West with a tape delayed broadcast at 9 p.m. on FSN Northwest. The championship game of the West Coast Conference tournament will also be broadcast on FSN with a time still to be determined. Gonzaga will also have six games broadcast on GU-TV which is available on local Spokane cable station 15. The broadcasts include the Bulldogs season opener against Utah Vally State and the final five home games against West Coast Conference foes.
WCC TOURNAMENT RETURNS TO FORM: The 2005 West Coast Conference Women's Basketball Tournament will have a new look this year as the league has returned to its previous format of all eight teams playing on the first day in a seeded bracket. The first day of the tournament will be on Thursday, March 3 with the winners advancing to Saturday's semifinals. The championship game will be played on Sunday afternoon with the winner earning the league's automatic NCAA Tournament bid. The last two seasons the WCC has held a weighted league tournament with the top two regular-season teams receiving byes into the semifinals. Gonzaga has benefitted from the previous format the last two seasons finishing second both years and starting tournament play in the semifinals. Last year the Bulldogs advanced to the WCC title game losing to Loyola Marymount 61-58.
SEASON TICKETS NOW ON SALE: Fans can now purchase season tickets for women's basketball in the new McCarthey Athletic Center. Season tickets cost $50 and grant fans a reserved seat at all 13 Gonzaga women's home games. Call (509) 323-4202 for more information or to purchase your seats.
BULLDOGS START NEW 3-STREAK: In the Bulldogs final home game in the Martin Centre, Gonzaga witnessed its consecutive game streak with a 3-pointer made come to an end against the University of San Francisco. That 0-for-6 performance against the Lady Dons ended a 222 game streak in which the Bulldogs had made at least one 3-pointer in a game. The streak started after the Bulldogs went 0-for-10 against the University of San Diego on Feb. 17, 1996. Gonzaga rebounded from that performance to knock down seven 3-pointers in each of its next two games to start a new streak which stands at seven games. The Bulldogs record for 3-pointers made in a game is 14 against UC Riverside on Dec. 31, 2001. Gonzaga has recorded 16 games with 10 or more 3-pointers made since the 3-point basket was incorporated into the college game.
PRESEASON FAVORITES: With five starters returning and back-to-back second place finishes in the WCC, the Gonzaga Bulldogs were selected as league favorites in a preseason poll of WCC coaches. Gonzaga received seven of eight first place votes and held a six-vote advantage over predicted runner-up Pepperdine University. The two league favorites will meet on Jan. 15 in Malibu, Calif., in a game that will be televised on Fox Sports Net.
BURKE, MATHEWS AMONG TOP WCC PLAYERS: Seniors Ashley Burke and Shannon Mathews have been selected as two of the top five returning players in the West Coast Conference. Both players were first-team All-WCC selections last season with Burke leading the conference in field goal percentage (.529) and ranking fourth in scoring (14.8 ppg). Mathews was the top point guard in the league last season with her 4.7 assists per game leading the WCC and her 2.17 steals per game ranking third. Joining Burke and Mathews among the top returning WCC players are Jennifer Lacy of Pepperdine, Ashlee Orndorff of Portland and Toni Russell of San Francisco.
NEW HOME FOR BULLDOGS BASKETBALL: Gonzaga basketball will have a new home this season as the Bulldogs open play in the new 6,000 seat McCarthey Athletic Center. The $25 million project was completed in October of 2004 and will serve as the home for men's and women's basketball. The Bulldogs played their first regular-season game in the new building on Nov. 20, picking up a 87-41 victory over Utah Valley State College. Gonzaga also knocked off Lewis-Clark State College by 60 points in the building during their only exhibition game of the season.
BULLDOGS SIGN THREE NEW PLAYERS: Gonzaga head coach Kelly Graves announced the signing of three new players that will join the Bulldogs team for the 2005-06 season. Signing national letters of intent with the Bulldogs were guard Jami Bjorklund, forward Maria Hassett and forward Simone Santos. Bjorklund is 5-11senior off-guard from Spokane's University High. Hassett is a 6-2 forward at Aloha High School in Beaverton, Ore., where she plays for former Gonzaga standout Ivy Safranski. Santos is a 6-2 junior college sophomore from Brazil that currently plays at Western Nebraska Community College.
