Northwestern's Remmerde poised to break mark
Red Raiders visit Briar Cliff
By Barry Poe Journal sports writer | Posted: Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Sometime during tonight's Northwestern-Briar Cliff women's basketball game, Debbie Remmerde should become the all-time leading scorer in NAIA Division II history.
Remmerde, a 5-9 senior from Northwestern College, has scored 3,229 points and needs only eight points to pass Brittany Smart, who piled up 3,236 in a star-studded career at Cedarville University in Ohio.
What many may not realize, however, is that Remmerde could also set another scoring record in tonight's 6 o'clock game at the Newman Flanagan Center.
Cheryl Dreckman, a former Briar Cliff star who played her final season in 1990, poured in 3,248 points. That's the all-time Iowa collegiate women's mark and if Remmerde scores 20 points, she'll break the record on the court where Dreckman enjoyed so many memorable moments.
"It will be nice to have it all behind me, but honestly it's not something I spend a lot of time thinking or worrying about," said Remmerde, who leads NAIA Division II with a 29.2 scoring average. "If it happens, great, but just like any other game, we're going into it with our focus to play at the best of our abilities and come away with a win.
"I'm going to try to do what I do every other game, which is let my shots and my points come with the flow of the game."
Northwestern, 16-1 overall and 6-0 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference, is ranked second nationally in Division II. The Red Raiders of Coach Earl Woudstra trail fourth-ranked Morningside (17-2, 7-0) by a half-game in the GPAC.
"Hopefully, we can come in and focus on winning the basketball game," said Woudstra, whose team has lost only to NCAA Division II Augustana (80-64). "Our kids have gone through some milestones with Deb along the way and I know people are interested in the record.
"That's great for our school, our program, our team and, of course very good for Deb, but sometimes all those things take the normalcy out of things. Briar Cliff is a scary team, so focusing on the game has to be our top priority."
Briar Cliff, 10-10 overall and 4-4 in the GPAC, is 5-2 at home and has won four straight in the Flanagan Center.
Dreckman, a former Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn prep standout, played in the days when NAIA women's basketball competed in just one division. NAIA Division II didn't come along until 1992.
Pearl Moore of Francis Marion, S.C., is the all-time leading scorer in collegiate women's basketball history with 4,069 points. She played in the AIAW era (prior to 1981-82), as did Lynette Woodard of Kansas, who ranks third with 3,649 points.
Like Dreckman, Miriam Walker of Claflin, S.C., second with 3,855 points, and Tina Webb of Arkansas-Monticello, fourth with 3,412 points, played for NAIA schools before there were two divisions. Jackie Stiles of Southwest Missouri State (fifth with 3,393 points) and Jeannie Demers of Buena Vista (12th with 3,171 points) each played for NCAA institutions.
"This is not about me breaking the record," said Remmerde. "It's about the people I'm playing with that are getting me those shots and the opportunity to put the ball in the hole. You would be crazy to think that I could have done this all by myself."
Amy Larson, a 5-6 senior guard from Denison, Iowa, adds 17.8 points and has fired in 59 three-pointers. Crystal Algood, a 6-4 senior post, contributes 10.2 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds while 6-foot senior Miranda Boekhout has a team-high 85 assists.
Briar Cliff's Cat Nelson, a 5-9 sophomore from North High, scored a career-high 27 points in an 87-51 loss at Morningside on Saturday. Nelson, who averages 13 points, has had five straight double figure outings.
Remmerde, a 5-9 senior from Northwestern College, has scored 3,229 points and needs only eight points to pass Brittany Smart, who piled up 3,236 in a star-studded career at Cedarville University in Ohio.
What many may not realize, however, is that Remmerde could also set another scoring record in tonight's 6 o'clock game at the Newman Flanagan Center.
Cheryl Dreckman, a former Briar Cliff star who played her final season in 1990, poured in 3,248 points. That's the all-time Iowa collegiate women's mark and if Remmerde scores 20 points, she'll break the record on the court where Dreckman enjoyed so many memorable moments.
"It will be nice to have it all behind me, but honestly it's not something I spend a lot of time thinking or worrying about," said Remmerde, who leads NAIA Division II with a 29.2 scoring average. "If it happens, great, but just like any other game, we're going into it with our focus to play at the best of our abilities and come away with a win.
"I'm going to try to do what I do every other game, which is let my shots and my points come with the flow of the game."
Northwestern, 16-1 overall and 6-0 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference, is ranked second nationally in Division II. The Red Raiders of Coach Earl Woudstra trail fourth-ranked Morningside (17-2, 7-0) by a half-game in the GPAC.
"Hopefully, we can come in and focus on winning the basketball game," said Woudstra, whose team has lost only to NCAA Division II Augustana (80-64). "Our kids have gone through some milestones with Deb along the way and I know people are interested in the record.
"That's great for our school, our program, our team and, of course very good for Deb, but sometimes all those things take the normalcy out of things. Briar Cliff is a scary team, so focusing on the game has to be our top priority."
Briar Cliff, 10-10 overall and 4-4 in the GPAC, is 5-2 at home and has won four straight in the Flanagan Center.
Dreckman, a former Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn prep standout, played in the days when NAIA women's basketball competed in just one division. NAIA Division II didn't come along until 1992.
Pearl Moore of Francis Marion, S.C., is the all-time leading scorer in collegiate women's basketball history with 4,069 points. She played in the AIAW era (prior to 1981-82), as did Lynette Woodard of Kansas, who ranks third with 3,649 points.
Like Dreckman, Miriam Walker of Claflin, S.C., second with 3,855 points, and Tina Webb of Arkansas-Monticello, fourth with 3,412 points, played for NAIA schools before there were two divisions. Jackie Stiles of Southwest Missouri State (fifth with 3,393 points) and Jeannie Demers of Buena Vista (12th with 3,171 points) each played for NCAA institutions.
"This is not about me breaking the record," said Remmerde. "It's about the people I'm playing with that are getting me those shots and the opportunity to put the ball in the hole. You would be crazy to think that I could have done this all by myself."
Amy Larson, a 5-6 senior guard from Denison, Iowa, adds 17.8 points and has fired in 59 three-pointers. Crystal Algood, a 6-4 senior post, contributes 10.2 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds while 6-foot senior Miranda Boekhout has a team-high 85 assists.
Briar Cliff's Cat Nelson, a 5-9 sophomore from North High, scored a career-high 27 points in an 87-51 loss at Morningside on Saturday. Nelson, who averages 13 points, has had five straight double figure outings.
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