‘Yote Notes –
Nov. 19, 2003
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Mike Safford Jr.
– Sports Info. Director
msafford@albertson.edu
GENERAL
ATHLETIC NEWS:
C.A.A. INFORMATION: Become more than a fan, become a
C.A.A. member and receive new benefits – such as license plate holders,
t-shirts, hats, polo shirts, jackets, and travel bags – all while supporting
either the C.A.A. or your favorite Coyote teams. For more information, contact Dave Hahn at 459-5835 or Mike
Safford at 459-5681.
C.A.A. BOOSTER DINNERS: Thanks to the over 80 folks that
attended the first Coyote Athletic Association dinner on Oct. 27. The next booster dinner will be on Monday
night, Dec. 1, at 6:30 p.m. in the Fireplace Room at the Simplot Dining Hall on
the Albertson campus.
DON’T
LOOK NOW, HERE COME THE ORANGES: Be on the lookout around the Treasure Valley for the
Albertson baseball team as the annual Orange Sale will take over Canyon
County. If you cannot locate a player
to purchase the oranges or grapefruits, contact head coach Shawn Humberger at
459-5861.
MEN’S
SOCCER NABS TWO ALL-REGION SELECTIONS: Juniors Drake Jakovac and Ryan Abo were among the 14
players selected to comprise the 2003 All-NAIA Region I all-star team. Jakovac, an honorable mention All-American
last season, and Abo, a two-time All-Cascade Conference selection, were among
the nine CCC players chosen.
Player-of-the-Year and Coach-of-the-Year awards will be released next
week.
VOLLEYBALL (19-9): Lady ‘Yotes head to NAIA Regional after second-place finish
at Cascade Conference Tournament
LAST
WEEK: at Cascade Conference Tournament, Ashland,
Ore. – defeated Concordia, 3-0; lost to Southern Oregon, 3-2.
COMING
UP: at NAIA Region I Tournament, Lewiston, Idaho
– vs. Montana Tech, Friday, 10:30 a.m. (PST); vs. Carroll, Friday, 4:30 p.m.
(PST); semifinals and finals, Saturday, TBA.
LADY
‘YOTES HEAD BACK TO REGIONAL PLAYOFFS: With a second-place finish at
the Cascade Conference Tournament, the Albertson volleyball team will be making
their third appearance in the last four years at the NAIA Region I
Tournament. The tournament will take
place at Lewis-Clark State College, the regular-season champion of the Frontier
Conference. Three Cascade Conference
teams (Southern Oregon, Albertson, Concordia) and three Frontier Conference
teams (Carroll, Lewis-Clark State, Montana Tech) make up the field, with the
tournament champion receiving an automatic berth in the NAIA Championships,
taking place the first week of December in San Diego, Calif.
HISTORY
AT THE REGIONAL: As mentioned, it is the third time that the
Coyotes have advanced to the regional in the current format. In 2000, Albertson made a splash at
regionals, winning pool play games against Southern Oregon and Rocky Mountain,
then knocking off Simon Fraser to reach the championship game. Despite a loss to Concordia, the Lady ‘Yotes
earned an at-large bid to the NAIA Championships in Palm Beach, Fla. The following year, things were not as rosy,
as the Coyotes dropped pool play games against Southern Oregon and Carroll.
FAMILIAR
OPENING OPPONENTS: Albertson enters the regional in a three-team pool
against a pair of squads they have met during the regular-season. Up first for the Coyotes is Montana Tech, a hot-and-cold team that
placed third in the Frontier tournament.
The Orediggers (25-12) had a poor second half of the season – at one
stretch dropped five out of eight matches.
They are a dangerous team, however, which uses aggressive serves to
their advantage. Freshman middle Marrin
Audet (3.2 kills, 1.1 blocks per game) is one of four players averaging 2.7
kills or more per game, while senior libero Kaila Minehan (4.01 digs per game)
is one of the best in the region.
Albertson handled Tech in three games at Blocktoberfest 2003, limiting
the Diggers to a .135 attack percentage – despite giving up eight aces. It is the tenth meeting between the teams,
with the ‘Yotes holding a 7-2 advantage, including wins in the last three
matches. Also on Friday, the ‘Yotes
meet one of the five teams that defeated them this season, Carroll. The Saints (23-9)
swept aside Great Falls, MSU-Northern, and LC-State to win the Frontier
Conference tourney after finishing the regular-season in second-place. Mary Lester (3.5 k/g, 3.1 d/g) is the key to
the Carroll attack, which defeated Albertson in three games back in
August. The ‘Yotes did find success in
the match, however, recording 15 service aces.
It is the eighth meeting between the teams, with the Saints holding a
5-2 all-time advantage.
FINAL
REGIONAL RANKINGS: The final NAIA Region I
top-ten poll established the six teams that will compete in the regional
tournament. Southern Oregon enters the
tournament as the No. 1 seed, ranked No. 19 in the NAIA, followed by Carroll,
ranked No. 21. LC-State, which received
ten votes in the final national poll is No. 3, followed by the Coyotes – their
highest regional rank of the season. Rounding
out the top-five was Montana Tech, followed by Concordia, Montana-Western,
Oregon Tech, Western Baptist, and Evergreen.
MENDIOLA NAMED CCC COACH OF THE YEAR: Coyote head coach Liz Mendiola earned the
highest honor for a coach last week, being named Cascade Conference
Coach-of-the-Year after balloting amongst the ten teams in the loop. Mendiola returned just eight players from
last season’s team and led the ‘Yotes to the most regular-season wins since the
1997 season. Also named to the
All-Conference team was setter Amanda Basañez (Elko, Nev. / College of Southern Idaho) and hitter Brittany
Bonnett (Logandale, Nev. / Dixie
State CC), with senior blocker Kristen Bailey (Fountain Green, Utah / Snow CC) earning honorable mention honors.
CONCORDIA JINX ENDED: It took a third match this season against
Concordia for the Coyotes to finally knock off the Cavaliers – and end a
five-year drought against the Portland school with a 30-23, 30-25, 30-18 win in
the CCC semifinals. Albertson had
dropped 11 consecutive matches to the Cavaliers since the 1998 season (a win in
a Cascade Conference first-round playoff game), including two matches during
the regular season. But six players recorded six-or-more kills, led by an
11 kill, 14 dig performance by Brittany Bonnett, to send the Coyotes to the
championship game for the first time. The
Lady 'Yotes fell behind 6-1 in Game 1 to a Cavaliers
team that was forced to five games earlier in the day by Evergreen. But a
15-3 run, including a nine-point push, helped by six Bonnett kills, erased the
deficit. Game 2 saw Concordia take a 19-14 lead on the strength of
Krista Ekeberg, but the 'Yotes middles took over. Albertson closed the
game on a 16-4 spurt, with Fran Hartman (Lakeview, Ore. / Lakeview HS) recording
three of her eight kills and Kristen Bailey three more of her eight in the run. Albertson
jumped out to a 6-1 lead in Game 3 and was never headed, thanks to five service
aces, including a Bonnett floater that ended the match.
ROCK-EM, SOCK-EM MATCH VS. SOUTHERN: Cascade Conference Player-of-the-Year Kristina
Matchett left her best game of the season for when it counted. The senior
recorded 30 kills and 20 digs as the Southern Oregon women's volleyball team
won the CCC Tournament with a wild 30-12, 24-30, 29-31, 30-21, 15-12 victory before
550 fans in a raucous McNeal Pavilion. Leading
13-12 in the pivotal Game 5, Nicholette LeBel rapped home a kill for Southern,
and Kelly Thoni served up an ace for match point. The Raiders sprinted out of the gates in Game 1, using an 18-4
run to end the frame. Matchett spiked home eight winners in the game. Albertson, playing in their first tournament
title game in school history, won Game 2 and Game 3 behind the play of senior
middle, Kristen Bailey, who tied a career-high with 19 kills. The Coyotes
trailed 29-27 in Game 3, but ran off four straight points to take the game. Erin
Cherrington (Granby, Colo. / Middle
Park HS) recorded 23 assists and a career-high 23 digs, Tiffany Sower (Eagle, Idaho / Eagle HS) had 13 kills and 17 digs, and Amber Igoe (Blackfoot, Idaho / Firth HS) bumped 13 balls in the loss.
NEW SCHOOL RECORD: The title match showcased an outstanding
performance for junior Brittany Bonnett.
Not only did she record 14 kills, but dug out 28 balls – to set a new
single-game record. The all-time
school-record is 37, set by All-American Kristyn Price, but since rally-scoring
was started in 2001, no other Coyote had recorded as many digs. The former record was held by Brecia Gamett,
who had 26 digs in a match during the 2001 season.
RECORD PACE: Albertson is currently on pace to set a new
school-record for kills and aces per game in a season. The Lady ‘Yotes are averaging 15.53 kills
per game, ahead of the 15.23 kills per game they averaged during the 2000
season, and are averaging 2.63 aces per game, ahead of the record of 2.56 aces
per game set last season
EVEN MORE RECORDS: Kristen Bailey is on pace to record three single-season top-five performances this season. The senior, who leads the league in both blocks and attack percentage – currently ranks No. 3 on the all-time list for blocks per game in a season, No. 5 on the all-time attack percentage list, and No. 6 in total blocks for a season. Bailey also has recorded 204 blocks in her career, ranking her ninth all-time, just six blocks away from seventh-place. Amber Igoe moved past Carly Merkel into seventh-place on the career digs list with 958, needing just 42 bumps to become the seventh player in school history with 1,000 digs. Two players are working their way up the single-season service ace chart – as Tiffany Sower ranks No. 4 all-time, needing just six aces to set a new school record, and Brittany Bonnett sits alone in tenth-place.
RAFFLE
FOR QUILT: The Coyote volleyball
team is holding a raffle for an 86-square inch quilt to be drawn on May 9,
2004. The original design “Crown
Jubilee” will be present at all home matches and is valued at over $800. Tickets are just one dollar each, or six
tickets for five dollars – and can be purchased at all home volleyball matches,
or by calling coach Liz Mendiola at 459-5858.
MORE
INFORMATION ON THE LADY ‘YOTES: For game stories,
statistics, and information regarding the Albertson women’s volleyball program,
head to the official site Lady ‘Yote volleyball: www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/vball.htm. Each night, scores and updated standings are
posted on the Conference Standings page within the Albertson volleyball website
at www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/vball/stats/standings.htm.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL (1-3): Home schedule to open Friday vs. NNU,
Coyotes go 1-2 at Westminster Tourney
LAST WEEK: at Westminster Invitational – lost to Westminster,
59-49; defeated Montana Tech, 72-71; lost to No. 19 ranked Montana-Western,
77-70.
COMING UP: vs. Northwest Nazarene, Friday, 7 p.m.
INTERNET BROADCASTS: Eleven Albertson women’s basketball games will be
broadcast live via the Albertson athletic website this winter. Join Jordan Komoto and Jake McClean for all
of the play-by-play this Friday night when the Lady ‘Yotes host Northwest
Nazarene at 7 p.m. Log on to www.collegeofidaho.edu/webcam/athletics.asx
for all of the action.
COYOTES IMPROVE IN SALT LAKE: Despite going just 1-2 during the weekend on the
Wasatch Front, head coach Reagan Rossi was pleased with the improvement
of the Lady ‘Yotes at the Westminster Tournament. “We continued to improve on our offense throughout the weekend
and our field goal percentage was notably improved. Defensively, we were unlucky at times – our opponents shot a
combined 18-of-32 from outside the arc in the second halves of the three
games.” Albertson, after turning the
ball over 38 times against Boise State, averaged 22 turnovers in the three
games in Salt Lake.
LADY ‘YOTES GET INTO WIN
COLUMN: Senior guard Carley
Williams (Boise, Idaho / Boise HS) drained a three-pointer with 2:22
left, capping an 11-2 run as the Lady ‘Yotes won their first game of the
2003-04 season, a 72-71 thriller over Montana Tech. Albertson trailed 66-59 with just under five minutes to go, but
got a bucket and two free throws from senior Krystal Thacker (Elko,
Nev. / BYU-Idaho) and a pair of jumpers from transfer Tabatha Hyer (Caldwell,
Idaho / Umpqua CC) to set up the Williams trey. The Diggers held a big 30-17 lead in the first half, but
Albertson held Tech without a field goal over the final six minutes of the
period, running off the final 17 points of the half.
ENDING A LONG DROUGHT: The victory ended a school-record seven-game
losing streak for the Lady ‘Yotes.
Albertson had not tasted victory since February 7, 2003 – a 71-56 win over
Warner Pacific. The previous record was
a five-game streak on two separate occasions.
DYRENG TAKES ADVANTAGE OF
HEIGHT: Without a player over six-foot
tall, last Friday was a big night for Coyote post, Michelle Dyreng (Fruit
Heights, Utah / Snow CC). The
senior scored a career-high 22 points, going 11-of-24 from the floor – tying a
school-record with the 24 field goal attempts.
She also added seven rebounds in the win.
MORE ON THE RECORD FRONT: Heidi Goicoechea continues to climb the career
record list. Through the first four
games this year, the senior has moved into third-place on the all-time scoring
list with 1,058 points – trailing current assistant coach Michelle Taylor by
237 points for the school record. Goicoechea
needs just 23 three-pointers made and 20 three-point attempts to move past
Cecilie Bates for first-place in those categories. She also needs just five rebounds to move into seventh-place on
the career list, trailing Maria Cook, who had 478 boards in her Coyote career.
TOUGH LOSS TO WESTMINSTER: The Coyotes had host Westminster where they wanted
them on Thursday evening, holding a 28-23 lead at halftime. But the Griffins, who shot 1-for-19 in their
previous game and a half from outside the arc, knocked home 5-of-9 treys in the
second stanza, leading them to a 59-49 win over Albertson. Heidi Goicoechea had a solid game, scoring
16 points, including 4 triples, but Albertson could not make up 29 turnovers –
21 of them in the second half.
All-America post Rebekah Steenblik had 20 points and 12 rebounds in the
win for Westminster.
BATTLING HARD AGAINST TOURNEY
TESTED TEAM: The ‘Yotes knew Saturday’s
game against Montana-Western was going to be a tough one – considering the
Bulldogs advanced to the second-round of last season’s NAIA Division I national
tournament. Albertson was game, losing
77-70 – staying within six points for the first 30 minutes of the contest,
before a late run put the game out of reach.
The Lady ‘Yotes did everything in their power to keep close – hitting a
season-high 46-percent from the field, draining 9-of-16 three-pointers, and
forcing 17 turnovers, but it didn’t matter to the No. 19 team in the NAIA
Division I. Dani Cotterell (Nampa,
Idaho / Nampa HS) led the team with 17 points, including five three-balls,
while Tabatha Hyer scored 12.
SOLID ON THE BOARDS: Against Western, Albertson had a substantial 41-26
lead on the boards and fared very well all tournament in the rebound category. In the three games, the Coyotes boasted over
a four-rebound edge per game in the tournament – a great sign for a team that
currently has just one player over six foot in the line-up.
WHERE IS KARREN?: Foul trouble has been the name of the game for
forward Lindsey Karren (Brigham City, Utah / Salt Lake CC) – as
the senior has not been able to catch any breaks. Karren is averaging just 25 minutes a game this season, along
with four personal fouls per contest.
When she is in the game, she is contributing – making 70-percent of her
field goal attempts and averaging six boards a night.
RIVALRY WEEK, PART ONE: Albertson plays their lone preseason home game
this Friday night, with rival Northwest Nazarene coming to town. The Crusaders (20-9 in 2002-03) advanced to
the second-round of the NCAA Division II national tournament last season,
losing to Cal State-Bakersfield. NNU
has split a pair of exhibition games, defeating a group of alumni, while losing
86-75 at Boise State. Leading returning
scorer Heidi Buehler (13.8 ppg, 6.1 apg) had 35 points against BSU, with Jenny
Binford (10.9 ppg) adding 18 against the alumni. Last season, the Crusaders swept a home-and-home series with the
Lady ‘Yotes – winning 78-65 in Caldwell and 81-68 in Nampa. It is the 17th meeting between the teams
since Albertson restarted their program in 1995 – with NNU holding a 14-2
advantage.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE LADY ‘YOTES: For up-to-date statistics, stories, and information about the Albertson women’s basketball team, head to the official website for the Lady ‘Yotes – www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/wmensbasketball.htm. For updated scores and standings from the Cascade Conference women’s basketball season, head to www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/wbasketball/stats/standings.htm.
MEN’S BASKETBALL (4-2): Off to Weber State go
the Coyotes after loss at Boise State
LAST WEEK: lost at Boise State, 91-49.
COMING UP: at Weber State, Friday, 9:05 p.m.
RADIO: All 29 regular-season contests will be broadcast
live on radio (1490 KCID-AM) and internet (via the Albertson Athletic Website)
during the 2003-04 season with Mike Safford Jr. calling the action for the
third-consecutive year. Join him Friday
night from the Dee Events Center in Ogden as the Coyotes take on Weber
State. Pregame begins at 8:45 p.m.,
with tip-off at 9:05 p.m. – on the “Home of the ‘Yotes”, 1490 KCID-AM.
BOISE STATE EXACTS REVENGE: Last season, Albertson saw a game-winning shot
rattle off the back iron at Boise State.
This year, they never had a chance.
An early 17-0 run by the host Broncos, holding the ‘Yotes without a
field goal for a seven minute stretch, erased any thought of an upset, as BSU
knocked off the Coyotes, 91-49. Five
Boise State players scored in double figures, as the hosts ripped the twine for
ten first half three-pointers in opening up a 51-18 halftime edge. On the flipside, Albertson managed just
2-of-13 shooting from outside the arc and were outrebounded, 45-26.
WORST LOSS SINCE?: The tough night for the Coyotes was the biggest
margin of defeat for Albertson since the 1996-97 season. On January 18, 1997, Marty Holly’s Coyotes
dropped a 95-59 decision to Oregon Tech – still the biggest loss for the team
ever in the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
WORST LOSS SINCE (PART 2)?: Was the BSU loss the worst in history? Nope – but you would have to go back to 1973
for a bigger margin of defeat. The
College of Idaho was knocked off by Westminster (known as the Parsons back
then) by score of 107-58, a 49 point loss – the worst in school history. Other 40-plus point defeats include a 107-62
loss to Cal-State Northridge (then an NCAA Division II team) in 1966, and a
121-80 loss to Linfield in 1965.
HOW ABOUT THE COYOTES BIGGEST
WIN?: Instead of focusing on the
negative numbers, how about the biggest win in Coyote history? It came during the national championship
season of 1995-96, when the ‘Yotes blew out UC-Santa Cruz, 111-31 at the Menlo
Tournament. During the pregame show on
KCID on Nov. 18, 1995 – a day after UCSC knocked off Menlo, Marty Holly told
Dave Hahn how good Santa Cruz was – then held them to 13-of-60 shooting and
dominated the boards to the tune of a 50-25 advantage.
HUMPHREYS PLAYS BIG: A bright spot for the ‘Yotes at Boise State was
the solid play of post Steve Humphreys (Reno, Nev. / Lassen CC). The redshirt junior led Albertson with 18
points and six rebounds – including a nice mix of mid-range jumpers and post
moves. More importantly, Humphreys went
6-of-7 from the foul line.
EVERYONE SEES ACTION: With the lopsided loss, head coach Mark Owen was
able to let all 14 players on the squad see time on the court. Seeing their first collegiate action in the
Purple were freshman Drew Visser (Eagle, Idaho / Eagle HS),
redshirt freshman Neil Stutzman (Fruitland, Idaho / Payette HS),
and junior transfer Lance Hansen (Blackfoot, Idaho / Casper CC).
CONFERENCE STAT LEADERS: With nine of the ten teams in the Cascade
Conference having started their season, the first glimpse into the loop stats
show five different players among the top-ten in individual categories. Leading the way is Steve Humphreys, who
leads the loop with six blocks, followed closely by Eric Howard (Las
Vegas, Nev. / Yavapai CC) with five.
Joe Green (Pocatello, Idaho / BYU-Idaho) ranks third in
steals (3.7 per game), while E.J. Costello (Pleasanton, Calif. /
Chabot CC) is fourth in three-pointers made with 13. Rounding out the group is senior Andy
Harper (Idaho Falls, Idaho / Columbia Basin CC), who is tenth in the
league in scoring average (15.7 ppg).
As a team, the Coyotes lead the CCC in blocked shots with 24.
OFF TO WEBER: Albertson concludes its three-game slate against
NCAA Division I opponents this Friday night when they head to Ogden, Utah to
meet Weber State. The first
meeting between the teams in 41 years has the Coyotes facing a Weber (26-6)
squad that lost to Wisconsin in the first round of the 2003 NCAA National
Tournament. The Wildcats were a perfect
16-0 in Big Sky Conference play last season and have won their last 17 games in
a row at the Dee Events Center. Big Sky
Coach-of-the-Year Joe Cravens returns a pair of All-Conference players in 6-9
post Slobodan Ocokoljic (15.3 ppg, 8.4 rpg) from Serbia, and forward Nic
Sparrow (10.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg). It is the
fourth meeting between the teams and the first since 1962, when the College of
Idaho knocked off Weber State, 75-74.
The ‘Yotes lead the all-time series, 2-1.
HISTORY AGAINST DIVISION I
OPPONENTS: NAIA schools traditionally do
not fare well against NCAA Division I foes – even though Albertson knocked off
Idaho State and Cascade knocked off Portland State last season. In recorded history, the Coyotes hold a 1-31
record against Division I teams – including losses to Nevada and Boise State
this season. In the last ten games
against D-I opponents (Nevada, Boise State, Idaho State), Albertson has lost by
an average of 16 points – including a two point loss at Boise State and a seven
point loss at Nevada.
MORE INFORMATION ON THE COYOTES: For game stories, statistics, and information
regarding the Albertson men’s basketball program, head to the official site
Coyote Basketball: www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/mensbasketball.htm.
- ALBERTSON -