Valparaiso (11-7, 3-4 MVC)
Game #19 - Friday, January 31 - 6 p.m.
at Drake (13-6, 5-2 MVC)
Knapp Center (7,152) - Des Moines, Iowa
Next Up in Valpo Basketball: Fresh off of one of the most thrilling wins in program history, the Valpo women’s basketball team hits the road this weekend for the Iowa road swing in MVC play, starting off Friday evening in Des Moines against Drake, which has won the MVC regular season championship each of the last three years.
Previously: Not all victories are created equal. Some wins are of the ho-hum variety, while other wins leave jaws dropped in their wake as fans try to process what they just witnessed. Last Friday’s game at the ARC was certainly a win of the latter variety, as Valpo rallied from down 11 points with three minutes to play for a heart-stopping 66-64 win over Loyola, capped by a game-winning three-point play from sophomore Shay Frederick with 5.2 seconds remaining.
Following Valpo Basketball: Streaming Video: ESPN+
Radio: WVUR (95.1 FM, Valparaiso)
Live Stats/Streaming Audio: Available via ValpoAthletics.com
Head Coach Mary Evans: Mary Evans (19-31) is in her second season as head coach of the Valpo women’s basketball program in 2019-20. Evans’ impact on the program was immediately clear in her first year, as Valpo shattered its previous program record of 224 made 3-pointers in a single season by knocking down 276 trifectas - a mark which ranks seventh in MVC history. Valpo ranked among the top-25 nationally in both total 3-pointers and 3-pointers per game in Evans’ first season at the helm of the Valpo program.
Series Notes: Drake owns an 8-0 record in the all-time series against Valpo. Seven of the decisions came on the court, while a Valpo win in 1995 was later forfeited. Last season, the Bulldogs earned wins in all three meetings: 84-53 in Des Moines, 88-62 in Valparaiso and 86-58 at the MVC Tournament in Moline. Valpo went an astounding 41-for-118 from 3-point range over the three matchups, led by Grace Hales, who went 12-for-26 from behind the arc and averaged a team-high 16.7 ppg in the three meetings.
@ValpoWBB...
...and @ValleyHoops
- Valpo has been selected to finish in eighth place in the MVC preseason poll, totaling 126 points.
- Valpo is in its third season as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference in 2019-20.
...looking back at last year
- Valpo posted an 8-24 record last season in head coach Mary Evans’ first year at the helm and went 3-15 in MVC play.
- Last year’s Valpo squad was ravaged by injuries, many times dressing just nine scholarship players.
- Valpo shattered its program record for 3-pointers in a season in 2018-19, knocking down 276 triples to race past the previous record of 224.
- Valpo also moved into seventh place in a single season in MVC history in 3-pointers made.
- Shay Frederick was named to the MVC All-Freshman Team, while Meredith Hamlet was an Honorable Mention MVC Scholar-Athlete.
...versus Loyola
- Valpo led 17-15 at the end of one quarter, but was out-scored 12-2 in the second quarter as Loyola led 27-19 at intermission. The Rambler advantage was 45-34 at the end of three.
- Valpo trailed by as many as 13 points in the fourth quarter, was still down 12 with 3:45 to play and found the deficit sitting at 11 points at 57-46 as the clock ticked under three minutes.
- Three 3-pointers in a 40-second span from Caitlin Morrison, Shay Frederick and Grace White helped cut the lead to 62-59 with 52.2 seconds remaining, making it a one-possession game for the first time in the second half.
- A driving layup by Frederick with 19.7 seconds to play brought Valpo within two, and the sophomore then converted two free throws with 12 seconds left to make it 64-63.
- Loyola advanced the ball to inbound in the frontcourt, but Zoe MacKay Zacker took a charge before the ball was inbounded to return possession to Valpo.
- It was Frederick’s heroics from there, as the sophomore drove the ball in an isolation on the right-hand side and finished at the rim through contact with 5.2 seconds to play to put Valpo in front. She stepped up and hit the free throw as well to complete the 3-point play to make it a two-point advantage.
- Zacker then got a hand on the Ramblers’ final inbounds pass, forcing a loose ball for a good bit of the remaining 5.2 seconds. Loyola regained possession in time for one final shot, but its off-balance runner was off the mark as the buzzer sounded to finish out the dramatic win.
- Frederick’s 3-point play at game’s end not only gave Valpo the win, it also ensured the sophomore matched her career high in the scoring column for the third time, as she finished with a game-high 21 points. Frederick also tied a career best with six rebounds and dished out a game-high five assists.
- Morrison scored in double figures for the third time in Valpo’s last six games, going 5-of-8 from the floor for 13 points while also adding three steals.
...versus Bradley
- Bradley led throughout the first quarter, taking advantage of shooting 9-of-11 from the field over the opening 10 minutes. But Valpo forced five turnovers by the Braves to limit their chances, ending the first quarter trailing just 20-17.
- A seven-point spurt early in the second quarter extended Bradley’s lead to 27-19, but Valpo answered immediately with eight straight points to tie the game at 27-27.
- A fast-break layup by Ella Ellenson gave Valpo its first lead of the game, as it put the Brown and Gold in front 29-28 with 2:16 to play in the half. The lead proved to be short-lived, however, as the Braves scored the final five points of the first half to carry a 33-29 lead into halftime.
- Bradley hit a pair of free throws to open the scoring in the second half before Valpo put together a quick 7-1 spurt – including five points from Caitlin Morrison – to tie the score at 36-36 with 8:31 to play in the third quarter.
- Bradley responded with back-to-back 3-pointers to regain separation, and the deficit ranged from four to 11 points for the remainder of the quarter. The Braves eventually held a 59-49 lead at the end of the third period.
- Valpo attempted to cut into the Braves’ lead in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, twice moving to within eight points, but both times Bradley answered with a basket of its own. The Braves held the Crusaders scoreless for a four-minute stretch in the middle of the quarter to put the game away.
- Valpo finished the afternoon shooting just 39% (23-of-59) overall and was just 4-of-22 (18.2%) from 3-point range – its worst effort to date in MVC play from downtown, as it entered Sunday’s game connecting at a 44.3% clip against conference opponents from deep.
- Valpo did continue its season-long trend of strong free throw shooting, going 11-of-13 (84.6%) at the charity stripe.
- Valpo fell on Sunday despite out-scoring Bradley off turnovers (15-14), in the paint (38-34), on the fast break (15-9) and off the bench (14-4).
- Morrison paced the Valpo effort on Sunday with a career-best 15 points, while Grace Hales chipped in 13 points.
...looking ahead
- Valpo closes out the Iowa road swing on Sunday afternoon at UNI.
- The Brown and Gold then return home next weekend, starting with a Thursday evening showdown against Evansville.
...on the road
- Valpo is 6-2 in true road games this year. The Brown and Gold went 4-2 in non-conference road play before sweeping the Indiana State/Evansville road trip.
- Valpo has won at least six road games in a season, the most road victories in a single season since 2006-07.
- Valpo has earned its three largest road wins in the last decade this season - a 22-point win at Evansville and 19-point wins at Detroit Mercy and at Indiana State.
- The 22-point win at Evansville was Valpo’s largest road win since a 66-41 win at Youngstown State on Jan. 14, 2010.
- Three of Valpo’s four road non-conference victories came by double figures - the first time the program won three road non-conference games by 10+ points since 1999-2000.
- Valpo enters Friday’s game with a five-game road winning streak, as it has not lost on the road since Nov. 21. The five-game streak on the road is the program’s longest since the 2004-05 team won five straight road contests Dec. 18-Jan. 5.
@DrakeWBB
- Drake enters Friday’s game at 13-6 overall this year and with a 5-2 record in MVC play, most recently dropping a 77-76 decision at Bradley Sunday afternoon.
- In capturing the MVC regular season title each of the last three years, the Bulldogs had lost only one conference game combined in that span.
- Two-time defending Jackie Stiles Trophy recipient Becca Hittner leads the Bulldogs, averaging 17.8 ppg.
- Sara Rhine is the other half of Drake’s dynamic duo, averaging 17.6 ppg on 67% shooting from the field and a team-best 7.2 rpg. Rhine enters Friday’s game just 12 points shy of 2,000 for her career.
What A Rally
- The 13-point comeback in the fourth quarter against Loyola was Valpo’s largest final-quarter rally since the women’s game moved to four quarters.
- Ironically, the last time Valpo rallied from that kind of deficit within the game’s final 10 minutes came at Loyola on Feb. 17, 2011. The Crusaders trailed that day by 14 points with 8:45 to play (and later 8 points with 2:45 to play) and went on to a 72-68 victory.
- Valpo’s largest deficit on Friday was a 14-point deficit late in the third quarter, the largest deficit it has come at any point in a game to win since rallying from down 15 for a 67-59 win at Youngstown State on Jan. 12, 2013.
- Friday’s win was the second rally of that type this year for Valpo, as in non-conference play against BGSU, it trailed by 12 in the fourth quarter and by 8 with 3:30 to play before coming back to force overtime and eventually win.
A Quality Win
- Not only was the manner in which Valpo won on Friday impressive, the opposition it took down in doing so was impressive as well.
- Loyola entered the game with a 13-4 overall record, a perfect 8-0 record on the road, and among the nation’s top-100 in RPI.
- While the Ramblers fell just outside the top-100 following Friday’s result, it has the potential to be Valpo’s first win over a top-100 RPI team since the 2012-13 season.
- Valpo’s highest-rated victory based on RPI over the previous six seasons was a 65-60 win over #129 Youngstown State on Jan. 23, 2016.
Shay All Day
- Sophomore Shay Frederick was the hero late in the win over Loyola, as she scored the last seven Valpo points, all in a span of 14.5 seconds.
- Frederick had a layup with 19.7 seconds to play, two free throws at 12.0 and the game-winning 3-point play with 5.2 on the clock.
- She also assisted on Grace White’s 3-pointer with 52.2 seconds remaining, which made it a one-possession game for the first time in the second half.
- The totality of her performance stands out as well. Frederick had 14 points in the fourth quarter to close out a 21-point effort to match her career high.
- She also tied her career best with six rebounds - the last of which led directly to the White 3-pointer in the final minute - and led Valpo with five assists - the 13th time this year in 18 games she has paced Valpo in assists.
- Frederick currently ranks third in the Valley in both steals (1.8/game) and assists (4.3/game), as well as fourth in assist/TO ratio. She is on pace to finish among Valpo’s single-season top-10 in assist.
Gotta Hit the Twos
- So far this season, Valpo’s 2-point percentage has been a strong indicator of whether it will emerge victorious or not from any given ballgame.
- In 11 wins this year, Valpo is shooting at a 57.2% clip from inside the arc.
- Meanwhile, in its seven losses, Valpo is shooting just 40.1% from 2-point range.
- The difference has been even more pronounced early on in MVC play, as Valpo has hit 62.5% of its 2-point attempts in its three Valley wins versus just 40% in its four losses.
- Last time out against Loyola, Valpo shot 17-for-30 (56.7%) from inside the 3-point line, including an 8-for-12 performance inside the arc in the big fourth quarter.
The Best and the Worst
- Valpo put together both its highest-scoring quarter and lowest-scoring quarter of the season in the win over Loyola.
- The 32-point fourth-quarter performance was the second-most points Valpo has scored in a period since the move to quarters, trailing only a 35-point third quarter last season against Evansville.
- Valpo has scored 30 or more points in a quarter five times in the last five seasons, three of which have come against the Ramblers.
- On the flip side, Valpo scored just two points in the second quarter last Friday, the lowest-scoring period since the women’s game moved to quarters at the start of the 2015-16 season.
Starters, Assemble
- Valpo has trotted out the same starting five through each of its first 18 games of the season: Shay Frederick, Carie Weinman, Grace Hales, Addison Stoller and Caitlin Morrison.
- Hales and Stoller were regular starters a season ago, while Frederick joined the starting lineup midway through last year. Morrison was a regular starter each of her first two years as well before missing last season due to injury.
- Within MVC play, the quintet has played 91:36 together and has out-scored the opposition 173-152 (75.5-66.4 per 40 minutes). That includes a 33-30 advantage in 17:58 of playing time together against Missouri State.
- Valpo has never had a season where the same five players started every single game. The 2007-08, 1997-98 and 1983-84 Valpo squads had four players who started every game of the season.
Thievery
- One area in which Valpo has been consistent all year long has been coming up with steals on the defensive end.
- Valpo has recorded at least six steals in all but one game this season and is averaging an MVC-best 10.5 steals/game, good for 35th nationally.
- The team is currently on pace to finish with its highest single-season steals total in nearly two decades.
- The numbers have picked up in conference play, as Valpo has tallied 10 or more steals in five of seven MVC games and is averaging 11.4 steals/game against MVC foes.
- Valpo took the thefts to another level in the win at Evansville.
- The Brown and Gold recorded 21 steals in the win over the Purple Aces, tied for the seventh-most in a single game in MVC history.
- 21 steals also is tied for 10th-most in a single game in program history and matches the most in a single game since 1995.
Hitting the Boards
- Through the first four and a half games of MVC play, Valpo had sustained struggles on the defensive glass.
- Over that stretch, Crusader opponents snagged 68 of 158 potential offensive rebounds, a 43% clip - including Illinois State grabbing 11 of 18 potential offensive rebounds in the first half of the Jan. 17 game.
- But in the five halves since, Valpo has shored up the defensive boards. The Crusaders grabbed all 14 defensive rebounds in the second half against the Redbirds.
- Against Bradley, the Braves secured just six of 22 potential offensive rebounds. Last time out versus Loyola, the Ramblers snagged just seven of 35 possible offensive boards.
- Combined, in the last five halves, Valpo’s opponents have just a 18.3% offensive rebounding rate.
Morrison Rises Up
- Junior Caitlin Morrison has enjoyed a few of the best performances of her career recently.
- Morrison set her career high with 13 points early in MVC play against Missouri State, and then broke that with a team-high 15 points versus Bradley.
- Last time out against Loyola, Morrison poured in 13 points as well in the come-from-behind win.
- After scoring just 4.6 points/game in the non-conference slate, Morrison has more than doubled her scoring average since MVC play began, as she is currently scoring 9.4 points/game in conference action.
Hales Approaches 1K
- Senior Grace Hales is nearing the 1,000-point milestone for her career, as she enters Friday’s game with 985 career points.
- Hales surpassed Cheryl Wilbrandt for 17th in program history in scoring last time out, and with seven more points, would match Shari Toelke for 16th position.
- When she hits the 1,000-point mark, Hales will become the 16th player in program history and just the fourth player since 2007 to reach the milestone.
- Hales will reach the mark thanks to her consistency, as she has played in all 112 Valpo games since she stepped on campus as a freshman. She has seen her scoring average go up year by year and is averaging a team-best 12.1 points/game this season.
- Hales also ranks among Valpo’s all-time best in a pair of shooting categories, as she sits second in free throw pct. (.859) and seventh in 3-point pct. (.362).
- In the MVC record book, which will only count years played in the Valley, Hales currently ranks fifth all-time in free throw pct. (159-of-182; .874).
