GPAC rivals meet in NAIA semifinal
By Barry Poe Journal sports writer | Posted: Monday, March 13, 2006
There are no secrets between two of the semifinalists in the NAIA Division II women's national basketball tournament.
Hastings and Northwestern, rivals in the powerful Great Plains Athletic Conference, square off in the first of two semifinal games tonight at 6 o'clock at the Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena. It's the fourth meeting of the season between the two schools.
Then, in the 8 p.m. nightcap, St. Francis (Ind.) tangles with College of the Ozarks (Mo.). The winners play for the national championship Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
Third-ranked Hastings (29-6), which shared the regular season GPAC title with Morningside, has reached the semifinals for the fourth time in five years. The Broncos of Coach Tony Hobson won back-to-back national titles in 2002 and 2003.
No. 6 Northwestern (30-4) has been the giant killer, so to speak, in this year's tournament. The Red Raiders beat No. 9 Indiana Wesleyan, 68-65, in a second-round game on Friday, then eliminated top-ranked Cedarville, 77-76, in a Saturday quarterfinal.
Besides Northwestern, Indiana Wesleyan and Cedarville are the only teams to hold down the No. 1 spot in the national rankings this season.
Hastings and Northwestern split regular season games, Northwestern winning 68-60 on Nov. 19 in Orange City, Iowa, and Hastings prevailing 94-86 on Jan. 14 at Hastings. Northwestern beat the Broncos 74-69 in overtime in a GPAC tournament semifinal at Hastings.
"We've had three pretty good games with them and I expect this one will be, too," said Hobson. "They're playing real well and seem to be clicking on all cylinders."
While the Red Raiders have been involved in a couple of tightly-contested thrillers, Hastings has had little trouble disposing of its first three foes. The Broncos beat Judson (Ill.) (70-43), College of St. Mary (Neb.) (70-51) and Dakota State (55-41).
Hobson, whose roster includes nine freshmen, said this year's trip to the semifinals was a bit unexpected.
"It's a little unexpected from the standpoint of where we started the season and how far we've come since early November," said the sixth-year Hastings mentor. "We've come a long way as a team.
"Our seniors have raised their level of play and provided great leadership and the freshmen, although they are talented, have continued to improve and get better."
Senior Lynnze Martinsen, the GPAC player of the year, and Katie Dent are the Hastings leaders. The 5-foot-9 Dent is the leading rebounder in the tournament with 30, including an 18-rebound effort against Judson.
Junior Stacy Svoboda and freshmen Sammy Zeuhlke and Maggie Schmaderer join the two seniors in the starting lineup.
Northwestern's Deb Remmerde, a 5-9 sophomore from Rock Valley, Iowa, and the all-time leading scorer in Iowa five-player girls basketball history, has already set the tournament record for three-pointers with 20. Remmerde, who hit the game-winning shot with 8.5 seconds remaining against Cedarville, has 122 points in three games (40.7 average) and is just eight points shy of the tournament scoring record.
Sandie Graves of Western Oregon scored 130 points in the 1996 tournament.
The Northwestern-Cedarville game was one of the most entertaining contests in recent tournament history. Cedarville's Brittany Smart poured in 47 points, a single-game tournament record, while Remmerde finished with 42 points. Cedarville, which lost to Morningside in each of the last two championship games, had a chance to win but Smart was called for an offensive foul with 1.5 seconds left.
"We were fortunate to win, it wasn't like they gave anything away," said Northwestern Coach Earl Woudstra. "I'm glad we didn't have to play today (Sunday) because I'm emotionally drained and I can't imagine how the girls feel."
Northwestern's starting lineup includes four sophomores -- Remmerde, Miranda Boekhout, Crystal Algood and Amy Larson -- along with junior Jamie Hoegh. The 6-foot-4 Algood has 15 blocked shots in three tournament games.
"To play against somebody that knows you so well is tough," said Woudstra. "You don't know if you should expect something different or not. Hastings has a great mix of young kids and veterans. Martinsen and Dent have been through so many experiences and their young guards are really dangerous.
"I'm impressed the way our kids have put three good games together. We've talked all season about this being a journey and taking the next step. I don't think they'll be satisfied just making it to this game."
Woudstra guided Northwestern to the 2001 national championship. The Red Raiders also reached the 2000 final, losing to Mary (S.D.).
Second-ranked Ozarks (32-1) survived a major scare in a quarterfinal, pulling out a 73-64 overtime win over No. 12 Benedictine (Kan.). It took a three-pointer at the buzzer by Rebekah Howard to send the game into overtime, then the Lady Bobcats outscored Benedictine 13-4 in overtime.
For Howard, it was her first three-point basket of the season. The 5-11 sophomore from Hedley, Texas, joined the team as a walk-on last season after Cara Painter, Ozarks' senior All-American, spotted her playing intramural basketball.
Painter, a 6-3 senior, has 64 points (21.3 average), 33 rebounds and eight blocked shots in the tournament. The other Ozarks starters are junior Allison Rader, freshman Josie Sparkman, sophomore Janessa DeMuth and senior Magan Curry. Curry had 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists against Benedictine despite suffering a sprained ankle.
Ozarks, in the midst of a school-record 23-game winning streak, is playing in the semifinals for the first time. The Lady Bobcats made it to the quarterfinals in 1999 and 2005.
"We lost a close one (to South Dakota Tech 69-63) in 1999 and an even closer one last year (to Cedarville 78-75)," said Ozarks Coach George Wilson. "Maybe it was just our turn.
"St. Francis is an awesome team and they've blasted everyone they've played. They don't have any weaknesses.
"But, this bunch of kids is truly one of the best I've ever had. They make my job a lot easier."
No. 7 St. Francis (28-7) is back in the semifinals for the first time since 2000, a year after it lost to Shawnee State (Ohio) in the championship game. The Lady Cougars feature a potent mixture of inside and outside talent and have won 19 of their last 20 games.
Seniors Megan Dossen and Cassie Reeder, along with junior Chivonn Keppeler, have each surpassed 1,000 points for their career. A fourth starter, junior Nikki Lewis, is just 11 points shy of 1,000. Senior Amanda Engleking is the fifth starter
St. Francis has fired in a tournament-high 31 three-pointers and has averaged 78 points per game. Its three victories have come against Minot State (N.D.) (71-63), Menlo (Calif.) (80-50) and Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) (83-51). In the quarterfinal win over Stritch, five players reached double figures for the 11th time this season.
"Reaching the Final Four was one of our goals," said St. Francis Coach Gary Andrews, the Mid-Central Conference Coach of the Year. "We don't match up well with Ozarks. Painter is a tough matchup for us.
"They're a great team, so hopefully we can give them a good game."
St. Francis is making its 10th appearance in the national tournament in the last 12 years.
Hastings and Northwestern, rivals in the powerful Great Plains Athletic Conference, square off in the first of two semifinal games tonight at 6 o'clock at the Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena. It's the fourth meeting of the season between the two schools.
Then, in the 8 p.m. nightcap, St. Francis (Ind.) tangles with College of the Ozarks (Mo.). The winners play for the national championship Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
Third-ranked Hastings (29-6), which shared the regular season GPAC title with Morningside, has reached the semifinals for the fourth time in five years. The Broncos of Coach Tony Hobson won back-to-back national titles in 2002 and 2003.
No. 6 Northwestern (30-4) has been the giant killer, so to speak, in this year's tournament. The Red Raiders beat No. 9 Indiana Wesleyan, 68-65, in a second-round game on Friday, then eliminated top-ranked Cedarville, 77-76, in a Saturday quarterfinal.
Besides Northwestern, Indiana Wesleyan and Cedarville are the only teams to hold down the No. 1 spot in the national rankings this season.
Hastings and Northwestern split regular season games, Northwestern winning 68-60 on Nov. 19 in Orange City, Iowa, and Hastings prevailing 94-86 on Jan. 14 at Hastings. Northwestern beat the Broncos 74-69 in overtime in a GPAC tournament semifinal at Hastings.
"We've had three pretty good games with them and I expect this one will be, too," said Hobson. "They're playing real well and seem to be clicking on all cylinders."
While the Red Raiders have been involved in a couple of tightly-contested thrillers, Hastings has had little trouble disposing of its first three foes. The Broncos beat Judson (Ill.) (70-43), College of St. Mary (Neb.) (70-51) and Dakota State (55-41).
Hobson, whose roster includes nine freshmen, said this year's trip to the semifinals was a bit unexpected.
"It's a little unexpected from the standpoint of where we started the season and how far we've come since early November," said the sixth-year Hastings mentor. "We've come a long way as a team.
"Our seniors have raised their level of play and provided great leadership and the freshmen, although they are talented, have continued to improve and get better."
Senior Lynnze Martinsen, the GPAC player of the year, and Katie Dent are the Hastings leaders. The 5-foot-9 Dent is the leading rebounder in the tournament with 30, including an 18-rebound effort against Judson.
Junior Stacy Svoboda and freshmen Sammy Zeuhlke and Maggie Schmaderer join the two seniors in the starting lineup.
Northwestern's Deb Remmerde, a 5-9 sophomore from Rock Valley, Iowa, and the all-time leading scorer in Iowa five-player girls basketball history, has already set the tournament record for three-pointers with 20. Remmerde, who hit the game-winning shot with 8.5 seconds remaining against Cedarville, has 122 points in three games (40.7 average) and is just eight points shy of the tournament scoring record.
Sandie Graves of Western Oregon scored 130 points in the 1996 tournament.
The Northwestern-Cedarville game was one of the most entertaining contests in recent tournament history. Cedarville's Brittany Smart poured in 47 points, a single-game tournament record, while Remmerde finished with 42 points. Cedarville, which lost to Morningside in each of the last two championship games, had a chance to win but Smart was called for an offensive foul with 1.5 seconds left.
"We were fortunate to win, it wasn't like they gave anything away," said Northwestern Coach Earl Woudstra. "I'm glad we didn't have to play today (Sunday) because I'm emotionally drained and I can't imagine how the girls feel."
Northwestern's starting lineup includes four sophomores -- Remmerde, Miranda Boekhout, Crystal Algood and Amy Larson -- along with junior Jamie Hoegh. The 6-foot-4 Algood has 15 blocked shots in three tournament games.
"To play against somebody that knows you so well is tough," said Woudstra. "You don't know if you should expect something different or not. Hastings has a great mix of young kids and veterans. Martinsen and Dent have been through so many experiences and their young guards are really dangerous.
"I'm impressed the way our kids have put three good games together. We've talked all season about this being a journey and taking the next step. I don't think they'll be satisfied just making it to this game."
Woudstra guided Northwestern to the 2001 national championship. The Red Raiders also reached the 2000 final, losing to Mary (S.D.).
Second-ranked Ozarks (32-1) survived a major scare in a quarterfinal, pulling out a 73-64 overtime win over No. 12 Benedictine (Kan.). It took a three-pointer at the buzzer by Rebekah Howard to send the game into overtime, then the Lady Bobcats outscored Benedictine 13-4 in overtime.
For Howard, it was her first three-point basket of the season. The 5-11 sophomore from Hedley, Texas, joined the team as a walk-on last season after Cara Painter, Ozarks' senior All-American, spotted her playing intramural basketball.
Painter, a 6-3 senior, has 64 points (21.3 average), 33 rebounds and eight blocked shots in the tournament. The other Ozarks starters are junior Allison Rader, freshman Josie Sparkman, sophomore Janessa DeMuth and senior Magan Curry. Curry had 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists against Benedictine despite suffering a sprained ankle.
Ozarks, in the midst of a school-record 23-game winning streak, is playing in the semifinals for the first time. The Lady Bobcats made it to the quarterfinals in 1999 and 2005.
"We lost a close one (to South Dakota Tech 69-63) in 1999 and an even closer one last year (to Cedarville 78-75)," said Ozarks Coach George Wilson. "Maybe it was just our turn.
"St. Francis is an awesome team and they've blasted everyone they've played. They don't have any weaknesses.
"But, this bunch of kids is truly one of the best I've ever had. They make my job a lot easier."
No. 7 St. Francis (28-7) is back in the semifinals for the first time since 2000, a year after it lost to Shawnee State (Ohio) in the championship game. The Lady Cougars feature a potent mixture of inside and outside talent and have won 19 of their last 20 games.
Seniors Megan Dossen and Cassie Reeder, along with junior Chivonn Keppeler, have each surpassed 1,000 points for their career. A fourth starter, junior Nikki Lewis, is just 11 points shy of 1,000. Senior Amanda Engleking is the fifth starter
St. Francis has fired in a tournament-high 31 three-pointers and has averaged 78 points per game. Its three victories have come against Minot State (N.D.) (71-63), Menlo (Calif.) (80-50) and Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) (83-51). In the quarterfinal win over Stritch, five players reached double figures for the 11th time this season.
"Reaching the Final Four was one of our goals," said St. Francis Coach Gary Andrews, the Mid-Central Conference Coach of the Year. "We don't match up well with Ozarks. Painter is a tough matchup for us.
"They're a great team, so hopefully we can give them a good game."
St. Francis is making its 10th appearance in the national tournament in the last 12 years.
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