Valparaiso (2-10, 0-0 Horizon)
vs. Tulsa (5-5, 0-0 C-USA)
Game #13 - Saturday, January 4 - 2:30 p.m.
Donald W. Reynolds Center (8,355) -
Tulsa, Okla.
Next Up in Crusader Basketball: The Crusaders travel to Tulsa for their final tune-up before Horizon League play commences. Saturday afternoon’s game is Valpo’s first road game in the last 28 days. The Brown and Gold completed a three-game homestand Tuesday with a New Year’s Eve contest against South Dakota. The Crusaders look to turn the tide in January, the team’s winningest month last season.
Last Time Out: Jessi Wiedemann set career highs in points (17) and rebounds (7) as she was one of four Crusaders to score in double digits. But South Dakota shot 58% from the field as the Coyotes downed the Brown and Gold 81-70 Tuesday at the ARC. Jessica Carr continued her improvement as she scored 12 points and dished out four assists. Carr returned to the lineup on Dec 29th after missing the team’s first ten games as she recovered from a hand injury sustained in a September automobile accident.
Following the Crusaders: Audio - WVUR (95.1 FM, Valparaiso) - Joey Basil (play-by-play) and Renee’ Turpa (color).
Links for the audio and live stats will be available at ValpoAthletics.com. In addition, ValpoGameday.com is a one-stop shop for live video, stats and social media interaction, all on the same page.
Head Coach Tracey Dorow: Tracey Dorow (13-30) is in her second season at the helm of the Valparaiso women’s basketball program in 2013-14. In her first season, Dorow led the Crusaders to eleven victories overall, including five in Horizon League play. Dorow arrived in Valparaiso after 14 seasons at Ferris State. She compiled a 232-163 record while with the Bulldogs. Furthermore, Ferris State posted the #1 grade point average in all of Division II for the 1999-2000 women’s basketball season as well as the #2 ranking in 2002-2003.
Series Notes: Saturday signals the first meeting between Valparaiso and Tulsa on the basketball court. This is the Crusaders’ first trip to the Sooner State since March of 2007 when Oral Roberts hosted the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament.
Storylines...
- Saturday is the first meeting between these two teams.
- Valpo will operate without sophomore Lexi Miller for the third straight game as she recovers from a concussion suffered last week.
- Tulsa head coach Matilda Mossman was an assistant at Illinois State during Tracey Dorow’s playing days.
- The Crusaders have won three consecutive non-conference finales.
- Tulsa is one of four teams on Valpo’s schedule whose nickname does not end in an “s”.
- The Golden Hurricane is the second team Valpo has faced that appeared in the 2012-13 NCAA Tournament (Notre Dame).
- Tulsa is Valpo’s 3rd straight opponent with just one true senior on its roster.
- The Brown and Gold beat Northern Illinois 54-49 last January 5th to snap a string of three straight losses to open a calendar year.
@TulsaHurricane
- @TulsaHurricane finished 17-17 last year, but swept the C-USA Tournament to earn its 2nd NCAA Tournament berth in seven years.
- @TulsaHurricane boasts six players on its roster 6’0’’ or taller.
- @TulsaHurricane’s only loss at home came to Texas Southern on Nov. 8th.
- Ashley Clark leads @TulsaHurricane in scoring with 13.5 PPG.
- Clark has taken 125 shots, 27 more than Kelsee Grovey (2nd most).
- Mariah Turner is shooting 59.4% from the field (38-for-64).
- In her third season as head coach at Tulsa, Matilda Mossman is 35-37.
- At the age of 24, Mossman was named head coach at Arkansas.
- Mossman was also head coach at Kansas State from 1984-89, where she was named Big 8 Conference Coach of the Year in ‘87.
Jessica Carr
- Made her season debut versus Western Michigan on Dec. 29th.
- Scored 12 points and had four assists versus South Dakota on Tuesday.
Elizabeth Hamlet
- Shot 3-for-5 from the field in Valpo’s 63-61 defeat of Toledo at the Toledo Invite.
Abby Dean
- Was perfect from the free-throw line Tuesday for the seventh game this season.
- Tied a career-high in assists (5) versus Western Michigan.
- Leads the Horizon League in free-throw percentage (90.3%).
- Has made at least two field goals in all but one game in 2013-14.
- Has started every game for the Crusaders.
- Registered a career-high 17 points at Tennessee Tech on Nov. 24th.
- Scored first collegiate points at historic Cameron Indoor Stadium last November.
- Made collegiate debut on November 14th versus Purdue-Calumet.
- Tossed in 11 points versus Western Michigan in 19 minutes last December.
Lexi Miller
- Tallied 13 assists to five turnovers during the Toledo Invite.
- Scored a career-high 18 points vs. Tennessee Tech.
- Possesses best assists/turnover ratio of any Crusader (29:28).
- Leads team in steals with 18.
- Accumulated 15 points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals (all career highs at the time) at Saint Louis on Nov. 10th, 2013.
- Made collegiate debut against the Indiana Hoosiers Nov, 9th, 2012.
- Made first start in Hinkle Fieldhouse versus the Butler Bulldogs.
- Scored 13 points in Valpo’s 88-62 victory over UIC on Feb. 16th, 2013.
Charae Richardson
- Has registered at least 13 points in four of the last six games.
- Sank a season-high three three-pointsrs versus South Dakota.
- Scored a career-high 23 points versus Montana State.
- Dished out a season-high seven assists at Tennessee Tech.
- Leads team in points/game (11.9) and is second in total assists (27).
- Scored 15 points in the season opener at Saint Louis on Nov. 10th, 2013.
- Played in all 31 games for the Crusaders last season, including 28 starts.
- Carried an 84.1 free-throw percentage.
- Finished second on the team last season in three-pointers (24) and assists (95).
Liz Horton
- Shot 23-of-45 (51.1%) from the field including 10-for-19 (52.6%) from behind the arc in December.
- Leads team in three-point field goal percentage (41.2%).
- Has scored exactly 11 points on four different occasions this season (Illinois, #6 Notre Dame, Montana State, Toledo).
- Appeared in 30 games for the Brown and Gold a season ago.
- Named Crusaders’ Most Improved Player in 2012-13.
- Scored 19 points, including 3-for-3 shooting from behind the arc, at Western Michigan on Dec. 19th.
Sharon Karungi
- Reached the century mark in rebounds Tuesday versus South Dakota.
- Averaging 12.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.
- Tied for second in Horizon League with most double-doubles (5).
- Grabbed 14 rebounds in both games of the Toledo Invite en route to Most Valuable Player recognition.
- Scored the game-winning put-back with three seconds to play against Toledo.
- Registered 17 points and 14 boards versus FIU for her third double-double of the season.
- Tallied her second double-double at Tennessee Tech, scoring 11 points and collecting 10 rebounds.
- Recorded her first double-double at Illinois on Nov. 12th, throwing in 15 points and grabbing 12 boards.
- At 6’2’’, Karungi is tallest player on the Valpo roster.
Jessi Wiedemann
- Garnered career bests in points (17) and rebounds (7) Tuesday versus South Dakota.
- Has scored 10 or more points in five of the last six games.
- One of only two Crusaders to start every game thus far for Coach Dorow.
- Named to Toledo Invite All-Tournament Team after scoring 15 versus Chicago State and 14 against Toledo.
- Has made multiple three-pointers in six games in 2013-14.
- Notched a career-high 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting at Tennessee Tech.
- Leads team in blocks (7), three-pointers (17).
- Snapped a season-starting 0-14 slump from behind the arc at #6 Notre Dame, nailing three treys in a nine-point game.
- Played all 40 minutes in the season opener at Saint Louis on Nov. 10th, 2013, and set career highs in blocks (4) and steals (3) while scoring six points.
- Appeared in all 31 games including four starts as a freshman.
- Made collegiate debut versus Indiana.
- Scored 13 points off the bench versus Detroit on Mar. 9th, 2013.
Roster Breakdown
- Valpo welcomes six new players (two freshmen, four transfers) to its team this season.
- Haylee Thompson and Annemarie Hamlet will sit out this season per NCAA transfer eligibilty rules.
- The Brown and Gold boast players from six different states and two countries.
- Liz Horton is the only true senior on this year’s squad.
