Sports News: Winter 2002-03

Monday, February 24, 2003

MORAVIAN HOSTS LEBANON VALLEY IN COMMONWEALTH SEMIFINALS

BETHLEHEM, PA --- The Moravian College women’s basketball team will make its second straight appearance in the Commonwealth Conference playoffs and the Greyhounds are the second seed, hosting third seeded Lebanon Valley College a semifinal contest on Wednesday, February 26th at 7:00 p.m. at Johnston Hall.

Wednesday’s other semifinal contest will have top seeded Messiah College hosting fourth seed Widener University at 7:00 p.m. The winners of Wednesday’s semifinal games will meet on Saturday, March 1st for the Commonwealth Conference championship, and the winner of that game will receive the conference’s automatic bid to the 2003 NCAA Division III Tournament.

The Greyhounds, who finished the 2002-03 regular season with an overall record of 19-6 and a 10-4 slate in the Commonwealth Conference, competed in the semifinals a year ago, losing at Messiah, 66-56. Moravian, which has won four straight games, finished in a tie for second place with Lebanon Valley during the regular season but the Greyhounds earned the higher seed on the fifth tiebreaker, point differential. Both team’s won on the other’s home court during the regular season with Moravian earning a 98-94 overtime victory in Annville back in December and the Flying Dutchmen winning 60-54 in Bethlehem on February 1st.

Moravian head coach Mary Beth Spirk has the Greyhounds in the playoffs for the 13th time in her 16 years as head coach. Spirk, who has an overall record of 288-141, is trying to guide the Greyhounds to their first 20-win season since 1993-94 and the squad’s first conference title since 1991-92.

Junior guard Kim Hughes (Manasquan, NJ/St. Rose HS) leads the Greyhounds in scoring this season with an average of 13.0 points per game. Hughes also leads the squad with 50 three-pointers, and she has added 63 rebounds, 45 assists and 45 steals. Senior forward Kelly McLean (Allentown, PA/Salisbury HS) leads the Greyhounds on the boards at 6.2 rebounds per contest and she is netting 9.3 points per game. McLean, who leads the team with 19 blocked shots, is currently eighth all-time with 1,142 points. McLean, who has contributed 19 assists and 20 steals this winter, is currently fourth in school history in career rebounds with 703. Senior guard Tara Wozniak (Roseland, NJ/West Essex Regional HS) is scoring 9.3 points per game and Wozniak also has 75 rebounds, 48 steals, 42 assists and 16 three-pointers. Wozniak currently stands in seventh place all-time with 1,227 career points and 14th all-time with 443 career rebounds.

Freshman guard Catherine Golden (Bethlehem, PA/Freedom HS) is averaging 8.6 points per game and added 41 rebounds, 17 steals, 20 assists and 12 three-pointers. Senior forward Kristen Sarnocinski (Harleysville, PA/Germantown Academy HS) is contributing 8.2 points and 4.5 rebounds per game with 47 assists, 25 steals and 20 three-pointers. Sophomore guard Jen Behagg (Hamburg, NJ/Pope John XXIII HS) is averaging 5.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per contest, and she leads the squad with 73 assists and just 59 turnovers. Behagg has added 48 steals while junior guard Sarah Onkotz (Catasauqua, PA/Catasauqua HS) has a team high 51 steals to go along with 38 assists, 16 three-pointers and averages of 6.6 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.

Junior forward Tracie Shipman (Philadelphia, PA/Archbishop Ryan HS) is adding 6.2 points and 4.3 rebounds per game with 26 assists and 42 steals while freshman forward Stephanie Seaman (Bethlehem, PA/Bethlehem Catholic HS) is contributing 5.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game for the Greyhounds. Seaman also has 20 assists and 19 steals this season. Freshman forward Heather MacDonald (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Valley HS) has netted 64 points and added 38 rebounds while freshman guard/forward Lindsay Brase (Bethlehem, PA/Notre Dame HS) has 50 points, 33 boards and ten assists. Junior guard Jackie Buschta (Whitehall, PA/Allentown Central Catholic HS) has contributed 48 rebounds, 39 assists, 40 steals and 28 points. Junior guard Jen Ellard (Washington, NJ/Warren Hills Regional HS) has added 12 points while freshman guard Nicole Savino (Macungie, PA/Brandywine Heights HS) has netted 11points. Savino has added 11 rebounds while freshman Diana DeFiore (Hammonton, NJ/St. Joseph HS) has three points.

Lebanon Valley enters the Commonwealth Conference playoffs with an overall record of 19-5. The Flying Dutchmen have dropped their last two games and are under the direction of head coach Peg Kauffman.

Senior guard/forward Stephanie Tighe leads Lebanon Valley in scoring at 15.8 points per game and she scored a school record 42 points in the overtime game the two schools played back in December. Tighe also leads the Flying Dutchmen with 17 three-pointers, and she is grabbing 5.3 rebounds per contest to go along with 47 steals, 31 assists and 17 blocked shots. Sophomore center Jennifer Northcott leads Lebanon Valley on the board at 10.0 rebounds per game, and she also has a team high 38 blocked shots. Northcott is scoring 11.3 points per outing and she has added 51 assists and 48 steals. Sophomore guard Crystal Gibson has dished out a team leading 127 assists to go along with 46 steals and 18 blocked shots. Gibson is also contributing 8.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.

Sophomore guard Erin Eaby is scoring 7.4 points per contest of the bench for Lebanon Valley and she has made a team high 58 steals to go along with 58 rebounds, 32 assists and ten three-pointers. Sophomore forward Tamika Rogers is contributing 6.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, and she has added 26 blocked shots, 21 assists and 17 steals. Sophomore guard Carrie Lathrop is tossing in 5.9 points per outing, and she has contributed 72 rebounds, 52 assists, 23 steals and 15 three-pointers while senior guard/forward Christine Bigler has averaged of 5.0 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Bigler has also contributed 40 assists and 24 steals while freshman forward Nicole Dixon has added 93 points, 66 rebounds, 18 assists, 18 blocked shots and 12 steals. Freshman guard Min-Leigh Myers has 42 points, 19 rebounds, 18 assists and 13 steals on the year while senior guard Andrea Zawalick has contributed 23 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists for the Flying Dutchmen.