Women's Basketball Heads West For Holiday Tournament

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NC Game Notes | Big Sky Conference Notes | Cal State Northridge Notes | NC Season Statistics

Tournament Two
Northern Colorado will play in its second straight tournament of the season on Friday and Saturday at the Warner Center Marriott Classic hosted by Cal State Northridge. This is also the second straight Thanksgiving tournament the Bears have played in California as last year they went 1-1 at the odwalla Classic, hosted by San Francisco.

In Other Action
Both weekend opponents play on Tuesday before taking part in the Warner Center Marriott Classic. Host Cal State Northridge plays at San Diego while Providence hosts Quinnipiac.

A Look Back At Eastern Illinois
Eastern Illinois scored 15 of the final 17 points of the game to come back and defeat Northern Colorado in the third and final round of the Preseason WNIT. The Bears led a majority of the game, but the Panthers were extremely tough from the free throw line (24-for-27, .889) to sneak out the victory at the Jack Stephens Center on the campus of Arkansas-Little Rock. Northern Colorado had a balanced attack in the scoring column as four hit double figures, led by junior guard Courtney Stoermer with 18 points. Freshman Lauren Oosdyke and senior guard Whitley Cox scored 14 and sophomore guard Kaisha Brown chipped in 12. Stoermer also led the team with four assists and two steals.

NC vs Cal State Northridge
Northern Colorado is 1-1 all-time against the Matadors and the two teams have not met on the hardcourt since 1986. The Bears won the first meeting in 1984 by eight and the Matadors return the favor two years later, winning by four at the Matadome. Northern Colorado has never faced Providence in basketball action.

All-Time Series
11-19-84 W 77-69 Greeley
12-16-86 L 71-75 Northridge

Scouting Cal State Northridge
Cal State Northridge is 1-2 in 2009, losing both home games before rebounding to win at San Jose State, 62-61 on Friday. The Matadors lost their opening games to New Mexico State and Prairie View A&M. Three players are averaging double figures in scoring in Jasmine Erving (19.3), Bridgette Conejo (15.0) and Janelle Nomura (13.3). Erving and Conejo also lead with 6.0 rebounds per game. In the loss to Prairie View A&M Conejo tied a school record hitting seven three-pointers. A season ago, Cal State Northridge posted a record of 8-23 overall with a 4-12 mark in Big West play for eighth place.

Scouting Providence
The Friars are 3-0 in the early goings with a game against Quinnipiac on Tuesday. Providence has victories over Brown, St. Joseph's and Hartford. Mi-Khida Hankins leads the team in scoring (17.7) and rebounding (8.0) and was named to the Big East Weekly Honor Roll last week for her efforts. Chelsea Marandola (17.0) and Brittany Dorsey (13.0) are also averaging double figures in scoring. In 2008-09, the Friars were 10-20 overall and 4-12 in the always tough Big East Conference.

Battle of the Bigs
Northern Colorado takes on two "Big" conferences this weekend in the Big West and Big East. The Bears have played four of the nine teams in the Big West Conference with a 3-4 all-time mark. They have split two-game series with Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Northridge and Pacific and have lost their only game against UC Riverside. Against the Big East the Bears are 1-3 all-time, having faced just three of the 16 teams. NC is 0-1 against UConn, 0-2 against Louisville and 1-0 against Marquette.

On This Date
Northern Colorado is 2-2 in games played on November 27 but has not had a game since 1999. The Bears are 2-1 on the road and 0-1 in neutral site games. On the 28th, the Bears are 5-4 with a 3-1 mark in neutral site games. One year ago, NC upset Washington 86-79 in San Francisco and the Bears have won four of their last five on this date.

On Top Of The World
Guard Courtney Stoermer currently ranks in the top five in the Big Sky Conference statistics in both scoring and rebounding and she is the top scoring junior in the league with her average of 15.7 points per game. Overall she ranks fourth in scoring and is fifth in rebounds, averaging 7.0 per game.

Double, Double Toil and Trouble
Redshirt freshman Lauren Oosdyke recorded the first double-double of the season for the Bears, scoring 14 and grabbing 11 rebounds against Eastern Illinois. Oosdyke is one of even players in the Big Sky Conference to tally a double-double this year and she currently is tied for the top spot in rebounding in the league, averaging 8.0 per game.

200 Here We Come
Both seniors Lizzie Cooper and Whitley Cox and sophomore Kaisha Brown are closing in on 200 for their careers. With her next assist, Cox will record her 200th. Cooper needs three more points and Brown is two points shy of the same milestone.

Balanced Attack
Against Eastern Illinois, four Bears scored in double figures. Courtney Stoermer led the way with 18 points, while Lauren Oosdyke and Whitley Cox each scored 14 and Kaisha Brown chipped in 12. In the consolation bracket of the Preseason WNIT, Stoermer averaged 19.5 points per game, while Cox averaged 11.0 and Brown averaged 10.5.

Steady Stoermer
Junior guard Courtney Stoermer leads the conference with an average of 37.0 minutes played a game. In 21 of the 63 games she has played at Northern Colorado, Stoermer has been on the floor for the entire contest and averages 36.0 minutes per game over her career.

Finding The Zone
After seeing just your teammates on the court for months at a time, it takes a little adjustment to defending new faces and being defended by a stranger. The Bears have improved their shooting in every game this year, becoming more and more comfortable in their roles. NC shot .310 in the opener at New Mexico, .341 at Arkansas-Little Rock and .365 against Eastern Illinois.

Step Away From The Line
Sophomore Kaisha Brown has yet to take a shot inside the arc this season. She is 7-for-18 on the year behind the three-point line for a .389 shooting percentage. Brown currently ranks 10th in the Big Sky statistics in three-point field goal percentage with her .389 mark and is also fourth with 2.3 three-pointers made per game.

Hitting Half
Junior centers Lara Merritt and Jayne Strand have both been plagued with foul trouble early in the season, but when they're in the game, they're making a positive impact on the team's shooting percentage. Both players are shooting exactly 50 percent from the field and are a combined 7-for-14 from the field. On the flip side, the two account for 25 of the team's 63 fouls (40 percent).

WNIT Summary
Despite the 0-3 record, the Bears took a lot of positives away from the Preseason WNIT. They improved their shooting percentage in every game, they played in two new hostile environments and cut down significantly in turnovers in game three (13) from game two (22).

Now Appearing
With her 14 points in the opener at New Mexico, senior guard Whitley Cox now ranks in the top-10 in scoring at Northern Colorado. She has 36 points on the year bringing her career tally to 1,084 to rank ninth. With 37 more points she will move into eighth past Jill Reifschneider (1993-97).

1. Missy Borell, 1999-03 1,866
2. Trish Williamson, 1987-91 1,590
3. Jenny Edgerly, 1985-89 1,462
4. Shelley Lindstrom, 1988-92 1,409
5. Diane Worner, 1980-84 1,353
6. Lou Piel, 1976-80 1,260
7. Missy McVoy, 1994-98 1,141
8. Jill Reifschneider, 1993-97 1,121
9. Whitley Cox, 2005-pres. 1,084
10. Sandy Dorn, 1993-97 1,065

Tough Start
The Bears start the season on the road for six of the first seven games of the year and are on the road the entire month of November. The team makes up for the long road stretch with four home games in six days in the middle of December.

WNIT Selection
For the first time in school history, Northern Colorado played in the Preseason WNIT. Ohio State won the 16-team tournament over Oklahoma State. Arkansas-Little Rock, Bowling Green, Chicago State, Eastern Illinois, Florida Gulf Coast, Georgia Tech, Marist, New Mexico, North Carolina A&T, Towson, UTEP, West Virginia and Winthrop also competed. The Bears are the first Big Sky Conference team to compete since Idaho State in 2006.

Helping Hand
Junior guard Courtney Stoermer is rapidly approaching being ranked in the top 10 in career assists at Northern Colorado. Stoermer currently has 216 assists, needing just 21 more to tie Jill Fadenrecht (1999-03) and Denise Nehme (1993-95) for 10th.

1. Kara Ketterer, 1996-00 517
2. Jenny Gallagher, 1994-97 361
3. Edie Byerly, 1984-88 345
4. Terri Mawhinney, 1985-89 286
5. Danielle Hagen, 2003-08 265
6. Jamie Schrier, 1983-86 249
7. Lisa Gurzick, 1989-93 244
7. Renee L'Heureux, 1981-85 244
9. Jill Fadenrecht, 1999-03 237
9. Denise Nehme, 1988-93 237
Courtney Stoermer, 2008-pres. 216

Quick Recap
The 2008-09 Bears posted a record of 12-18 and finished seventh in the Big Sky Conference standings. Northern Colorado returns eight letterwinners and four starters from the team for a total of 72.6 percent of its scoring and 73.3 percent of its rebounding. The squad posted a perfect 2-0 record against teams from the Pac-10, defeating both Washington and Washington State in neutral games during tournaments in Cancun and San Francisco, respectively.

Picked Sixth, Eighth
For not the first time in history, and assuredly not the last, there is discrepancy between the women's basketball coaches and media in the Big Sky Conference. The Big Sky office announced the 2009-10 preseason coaches and media polls. The two groups agreed on the top three picks and the ninth selection, but had the middle of the pack in different orders. Northern Colorado is selected sixth among the coaches with 28 points but eighth in the media poll with 66 points. Portland State, Montana and Montana State were tabbed by both groups as the top three, respectively, while Northern Arizona rounded out both polls in ninth. The coaches have Weber State fourth and Idaho State fifth ahead of the Bears, then Eastern Washington and Sacramento State in seventh and eighth, respectively. The media ranked Idaho State fourth, Sacramento State fifth, Weber State sixth and Eastern Washington seventh.

Signing With ESPN
The University of Northern Colorado department of athletics is proud to announce it has partnered with ESPN AM 870 for women's basketball radio broadcasts in 2009-10. All regular season games will be available live both over the airwaves at 870 AM, as well as online via audio streaming at www.espn870.net. Northern Colorado alumnus Jason Alvine will be handling the play-by-play duties for the Bears' action.

Coaches Show
The Jaime White Head Coaches Show will take place at The Den at the Clarion Inn Hotel (701 8th Street) on Tuesdays from 6:00-7:00 p.m. during the months of November and December. Join Coach White and host Jason Alvine as they recap the previous week, preview the upcoming week and talk strategies with fans and players.

Honored
Guard Courtney Stoermer was named to the Big Sky All-Conference Second Team at the conclusion of the 2008-09 season and was the only sophomore named to either the First or Second team by the league's coaches. Stoermer was the only player in the conference to rank in the top 15 in the league in assists, blocked shots and steals. She also was among the top 15 in scoring, three-point field goal percentage, free throw percentage, three-pointers made and assist-to-turnover ratio.

Going Streaking
Northern Colorado has now made at least one three-pointer in 240 consecutive games, dating all the way back to Jan. 20, 2001 at South Dakota State.

Stellar In The Classroom
Six current Bears were named to the Big Sky All-Academic Team last season in Kaisha Brown, Lizzie Cooper, Courtney Kranz, Cassie Lambrecht, Lara Merritt and Courtney Stoermer.

Bears Add Four Freshmen
Three Colorado and one Minnesota high school standouts signed National Letters of Intent to play women's basketball at the University of Northern Colorado, announced Head Coach Jaime White. Molly Duehn, Kirsten Hess, Kim Lockridge and D'Shara Strange make up the signing class for the Bears and will enroll in classes in the fall of 2010.

Molly Duehn, 6-1, G, Burnsville, Minn. (Burnsville HS)
Duehn is a three-time all-conference selection as well as a two-time all-state pick... She has been named the team MVP the last three seasons and has been named the Metro Player of the Week three times throughout her career... Also is a middle blocker for the volleyball team, getting named Most Improved Player two years... As a junior, averaged 17.5 points, seven rebounds and four assists per game and is a captain for her senior year... Is a member of the National Honor Society and has helped lead her AAU team to four state championships.

Kirsten Hess, 6-2, C, Denver, Colo. (JK Mullen HS)
Hess was an all-state honorable mention selection a year ago and a second-team All-Centennial League selection... Also competes in volleyball and track & field for the Mustangs where she was the 2007 Centennial League champion in the shot put... Is a three-time honor roll member and was named to the 2008-09 all-state Academic Team... Helped lead Mullen to the state title game in her junior season and is a captain for her senior year... Plays for Colorado Hoopsters.

Kim Lockridge, 6-0, F, Littleton, Colo. (Heritage HS)
Lockridge was named to both the all-conference and all-state teams in her junior campaign after averaging 18 points and 10 rebounds per game... Has earned three letters each in volleyball, basketball and track & field... Helped the Eagles finish in the top eight in the state a year ago.

D'Shara Strange, 5-10, G, Fountain, Colo. (Fountain Fort Carson HS)
Strange is a three-time all-conference selection and a three-year captain heading into her senior season... Is also a four-year honor roll selection... Averages 13 points and six rebounds a game.