‘Yote Notes –
Feb. 5, 2004
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Mike Safford Jr.
– Sports Info. Director
msafford@albertson.edu
GENERAL
ATHLETIC NEWS:
NEXT C.A.A. DINNER: The next Coyote Athletic
Association booster dinner will be at 6:30 p.m., Monday Feb. 16, in the Simplot
Dining Hall. Cost is $8.00 at the door and RSVP's are being taken by Dave
Hahn at 459-5835.
TAILGATE PARTY IN BLATCHLEY: The Albertson alumni office will
be hosting the second of three tailgate parties prior to basketball games this
Saturday. Cost is $5.00 and gets you food and drink at Blatchley Hall -
beginning at 4:30 p.m. prior to the games vs. Eastern Oregon.
CHEERLEADER RAFFLE: This weekend, look for the Coyote
cheerleaders passing around the Coyote mascot head for donations - for a new
mascot costume.
SKIING: Coyote
men and women alone atop Northwest Conference standings
SKI TEAMS STRUGGLE A BIT AT
ALBERTSON OPEN: Icy
conditions and poor visibility hampered the Coyote ski teams this past weekend
at the Albertson College Open, at Mt. Spokane. The women's team was
consistent, placing second behind invitee, Rocky Mountain, in both Saturday's
giant slalom and Sunday's slalom event. The men, however, struggled on
Saturday, finishing eighth, while improving for a third-place finish on
Sunday. Molly Bullard had an outstanding weekend for the Coyotes, placing
sixth on Saturday, improving to third-place on Sunday. Matt Slyvester had
two top-ten finishes for the men, including a fifth-place finish on
Saturday.
STANDINGS: In both the men's and women's
Northwest Conference standings, Albertson holds the top spot. On the
women's side, the University of Oregon, University of Puget Sound, and
University of British Columbia are the key pursuers. In the men's race,
Albertson is neck-and-neck with British Columbia. Individually, Cassie
Marcial leads the women's race for skier-of-the-year, with Molly Bullard in hot
pursuit. Albertson holds the top three spots on the men's list - Sam
Elias, Justin Rackley, and Matt Slyvester.
THIS WEEKEND: Albertson travels to Schweitzer
Mountain in Sandpoint for the final Northwest Conference qualifier. Both
Saturday and Sunday's events will be conducted on a giant slalom course.
SNOW REPORT: Recent precipitation has helped the status of our local ski resorts. At Bogus Basin, the hill reports a 70 inch base, with 74 inches at the top. At Brundage Mountain, site of the 2005 USCSA National Championships, they report a 73 inch base, with 96 inches at the top. Both report great groomed runs.
MEN’S BASKETBALL (19-5, 12-1 CCC): Coyotes
remain at No. 3 in NAIA after weekend sweep; Eastern Oregon headed to town
LAST WEEK: defeated Cascade, 82-74; defeated Warner Pacific,
73-35.
COMING UP: vs. Eastern Oregon, Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
RADIO: All 29 regular-season contests will be broadcast
live on radio during the 2003-04 season with Mike Safford Jr. calling the
action for the third-consecutive year.
Join him this weekend as the Coyotes end their three-game homestand with
Saturday’s game vs. Eastern Oregon.
Catch all of play-by-play on the “Home of the Coyotes”, 1490 KCID-AM.
INTERNET BROADCASTS: This Saturday’s game will be simulcast on the
Albertson Athletic Website (www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/mbasketball/profiles/0203/radio.htm).
COYOTE RETURN TO THE NO. 3
SPOT IN POLL: Things did not change in the
top-three of the NAIA Division II national poll, as No. 1 Jamestown (N.D.), No.
2 St. Ambrose (Iowa), and No. 3 Albertson were victorious. It is the second-straight week that the
Coyotes have claimed the third spot, and the three-time in four weeks. Albertson has remained in the top-five for
five consecutive polling periods this season.
Rounding out the top-five were William Jewell (Mo.) and Cornerstone
(Mich.). Oregon Tech is the lone other
Cascade Conference team, moving up four slots to No. 13.
‘YOTES ONE OF THREE TEAMS TO
CLINCH PLAYOFF SPOT: With weekend wins over
Cascade and Warner Pacific, the Coyotes have clinched one of the eight CCC
Tournament berths – despite having five regular-season games remaining. Joining Albertson in the party is Oregon
Tech and Southern Oregon – as each of the three teams have more wins already
than the bottom three teams in the league can achieve.
DEFENSIVE AMBUSH: Going nearly 16 minutes without a field goal,
committing 25 turnovers, and scoring just 11 points in a half – not a good way
to win a ball game. Warner Pacific
found this out on Saturday, as the Coyotes turned up the defensive pressure in a
73-35 win. A close game early at 14-11
turned into a blowout, when the Knights would commit 14 turnovers and miss 13
consecutive shots during the final 13 minutes of the opening half, as the
Coyotes scored the last 23 points of the period. Not to be outdone, Albertson would then hold Warner without a
field goal for another six-minute stretch in the second half – all while
canning 12 three-pointers on the night.
Andy Harper (Idaho Falls, Idaho / Columbia Basin CC) scored
20 points, including six treys, as the ‘Yotes won for the fifth-straight time.
LEAST POINTS SINCE?: Pages were being thumbed through in the record
book after the game, as Albertson held its opponent to their least point total
since 1995 – a 111-31 victory over UC-Santa Cruz. It was the fifth time since 1950 that Albertson has held their
opponent below 40 points (43-36 win over Western Baptist in 1984, 59-32 win
over Whitman in 1951, 54-29 win over Pacific in 1950).
BIGGEST CONFERENCE WIN SINCE?:
The 38-point margin of victory was also
the largest CCC win in four years. Not since
the Coyotes topped Cascade, 110-53, on Jan. 1, 2000, had Albertson defeated a
CCC opponent by such a large margin.
STEALING MACHINE: The catalyst for the Coyotes on Saturday was
point-guard Joe Green (Pocatello, Idaho / BYU-Idaho), who tied a
season-high with ten assists and seven steals.
He currently ranks second in the CCC in steals per game (3.08) and fifth
in assists per game (4.83). His 73
steals this season are sixth-best all-time (with at least six games remaining),
just 15 swipes away from the single-season record.
COYOTES STOP CASCADE: Although the game was never in doubt, Friday’s
82-74 victory over Cascade College was never a blowout. A 23-8 first half run helped Albertson build
a 45-33 halftime edge and the visitors never got closer than eight – while the
‘Yotes never led by more than 17. Tom
Perkes (Spokane, Wash. / Big Bend CC) moved into eighth-place on the
all-time scoring list by tallying a season-high 26 points, with Andy Harper
scoring 17.
GOOD AT REBOUNDING?: Head coach Mark Owen mentioned earlier in
the season that the Coyotes are a better team when they lose the rebound
battle. That has not been the case
lately, as the worst rebounding team in the league (statistically) has recorded
more boards than their opponent in each of their last four games – all
wins. This has allowed the squad’s
rebound margin to improve from (–8.2) to (-5.5) – in a matter of three weeks.
MORE ON COACH “O”: With the victory over Warner Pacific, Mark Owen picked
up his 90th win of his career at Albertson.
Coach “O” has a 90-40 career record, a .692 winning percentage, which is
second only to Marty Holly in the Coyote records.
NATIONAL STATISTICS: The Coyotes rank No. 3 in the NAIA Division II in
free throw percentage (.765), along with No. 9 in turnover margin (4.00). Individually, Joe Green ranks No. 8 in the
nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.22) and No. 9 in steals per game (3.08),
while Andy Harper is 13th in free throw percentage (.886). Within the Cascade Conference, the ‘Yotes
rank No. 2 in five separate categories – scoring defense (71.3), steals per
game (9.12), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.21), turnover margin, and free throw
percentage. Harper leads the league in
free throw percentage, while Green ranks second in steals and
assist-to-turnover ratio, and fifth in assists (4.83). Steve Humphreys (Reno, Nev. /
Lassen CC) is fourth in the loop in blocks per game (1.22) and E.J.
Costello (Pleasanton, Calif. / Chabot CC) is fifth in three-pointers
made per game (2.58). Rounding out the
group is Tom Perkes, who is sixth in the loop in scoring average (17.1), eighth
in blocks per game (0.75), ninth in both field goal (.518) and free throw
percentage (.771), and tenth in rebound average (6.7).
CAREER RECORD WATCH: Four members of the 2003-04 Coyotes find
themselves on the all-time career top-ten list at Albertson College. The best of the best is Tom Perkes – who
ranks among the elite in eight different categories: No. 3 in scoring average
(18.4), No. 6 in free throws made (268), seventh in both field goals made
(402), free throw attempts (322), and blocked shots (44), eighth in points
scored (1,104), ninth in rebounds (453), and tenth in field goal attempts
(742). Joe Green is sixth all-time in
assists (263), and fourth in steals (156) – just seven steals away from
third-place, held by his current boss, Mark Owen. Andy Harper is sixth all-time in three-point attempts (356) and
eighth in three-point makes (135), while Justin McCarthy (Boise,
Idaho / Boise HS) is third all-time in blocks (52) and sixth in games
played (111).
HERE COMES A HOT EASTERN
BUNCH: Albertson has a Friday off
for the first time in awhile, as the Coyote play travel partner, Eastern
Oregon, on Saturday night at the Activities Center. Eastern (11-9, 6-7 CCC) has run off three
wins in a row, including a 88-58 win at Walla Walla College on Tuesday
night. The Mountaineers record is a bit
deceiving, considering they have played seven overtime games this season – with
a 2-5 mark in those games (including losses to Oregon Tech and Southern Oregon
at home, and Evergreen, Cascade, and Concordia on the road). Four Eastern players average 14-or-more
points a game – forwards Trevor Exline (17.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg) and Bryan Rabas
(14.3 ppg, .441 3FG%), and guards Larry Smith (15.8 ppg) and Tyree Jones (15.0
ppg, 6.8 apg). Albertson knocked off
the Mounties, 74-64 in La Grande on Jan. 10, their 75th win in 110 meetings
since 1950.
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.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL (7-12, 6-7 CCC): Goicoechea
breaks one school record, nears another as Lady ‘Yotes host Eastern
LAST WEEK: defeated Cascade, 67-36; lost to Warner Pacific,
74-70 (OT)
COMING UP: vs. Eastern Oregon, Saturday, 5:30 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 weekend at www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/wbasketball/2003RADIO.htm - the internet home of Lady ‘Yote
Basketball.
NO CONFERENCE TITLE THIS YEAR:
With a loss to third-place Warner Pacific
on Saturday night, the Albertson women’s basketball team was eliminated from contention
for the Cascade Conference regular-season title. The Lady ‘Yotes are currently six games behind front-running
Eastern Oregon with just five games to play.
Only Oregon Tech, Northwest, and Warner Pacific have a chance to catch
the Mountaineers.
COYOTES LOSE A WIN: Even worse for the Lady ‘Yotes was the fact that
the squad lost one of their eight wins this season by an administrative
snafu. Albertson defeated Northwest
Christian, 72-46, back on Dec. 6 – just as four other Cascade Conference teams
had done. However, it was disclosed
this week that Northwest Christian is playing as a club team in 2003-04, not as
an intercollegiate program – with the games against CCC teams designated as
exhibitions. Albertson, Western
Baptist, and Concordia all had wins taken off their ledger this week, with
Warner Pacific having two wins removed, and Cascade a loss removed. All statistics from those games are null and
void. However, an appeal to have the
games reinstated has been filed with the NAIA.
GOICOECHEA NAMED CCC
PLAYER-OF-THE-WEEK: For a big week in games
against Western Baptist, Cascade, and Warner Pacific, Heidi Goicoechea (Burley,
Idaho / Burley HS) becomes the first Albertson basketball player this
winter to earn Cascade Conference player-of-the-week honors. The senior averaged nearly 20 points a game,
along with six rebounds, and three assists in the three games played.
RECORDS BROKEN, ONE GIVEN
BACK: Part of the reason Heidi
Goicoechea won the weekly award was the fact that the four-year player set two
all-time Lady ‘Yote records last week – but one had to be given back (for the
time being). With a 5-for-6 three-point
performance against Cascade on Friday, “Goic” moved past Cecilie Bates for the
top-spot all-time in three-pointers made with 201. Saturday night, she moved past Michelle Wescott (Taylor) on the all-time
scoring list with a 24-point performance – giving her 1,302 points in her
career, tops in school history.
However, the record is back in the hands of her current assistant coach,
as the 13 points Goicoechea scored against Northwest Christian had to be
returned, putting her career total at 1,289 – six points shy of the record.
NIGHT OF RUNS ENDS IN WARNER’S
FAVOR: If Saturday night’s game
between Albertson and Warner Pacific had been played on a see-saw, the
teeter-totter would have been broken. A
back-and-forth night filled with big runs ended with the visitors taking home a
74-70 overtime win. The Knights held
the Lady ‘Yotes without a field goal in the first six minutes of the game,
using ten turnovers to build a 9-0 and 14-3 lead. However, the Coyotes would rally, cutting the end to 31-29 at
halftime. Albertson would then hold WPC
without a score for a seven-minute stretch of the second half, building a
54-41lead with eight minutes remaining.
However, the Coyotes would make just three field goals the rest of the
half – and Warner would knot the score 62-62 with 15 seconds left, sending the
game to overtime. Although Albertson
would take a 66-65 lead in the extra session, the Knights would hit a trey –
and never trailed again.
LOPSIDED WIN OVER CASCADE: Albertson registered their most lopsided victory
of the 2003-04 season on Friday night, defeating lowly Cascade College,
67-36. The Lady ‘Yotes were never
threatened, jumping out to a 13-0 lead and held as big of margin as 38
points. Heidi Goicoechea led the way
with 19 points – the only Coyote in double-figures, as 13 of the 14 players in
uniform got in the scoring column. Albertson
also hit a season-high 12 three-pointers in the win.
36 POINTS AND UNDER: The 36 points given up by the ‘Yotes was the
lowest output by an opponent this season.
However, such a total is nothing new to the program. Since women’s basketball returned to
Albertson in 1995, the Lady ‘Yotes have held an opponent to 36-or-less points
on 15 occasions, including four times under 30. The school record for least points allowed was 14 – in a 127-14
victory over CSU-Monterey Bay, which is an NAIA record for point differential.
NATIONAL NUMBERS: The Albertson women rank heavily in the NAIA
Division II national statistics, as a team and as individuals. As a team, the Lady ‘Yotes rank No. 12 in
rebound margin (+7.21), No. 12 in total rebounds (42.6), and No. 14 in blocked
shots per game (3.90). Individually,
three players rank in the national Top-20 – Kasey Hooter (Nampa,
Idaho / Walla Walla CC) ranks third in field goal percentage (.643), Dani
Cotterell (Nampa, Idaho / Nampa HS) ranks No. 16 in three-pointers
per game (2.79), and Michelle Dyreng (Fruit Heights, Utah / Snow CC)
ranks No. 13 in blocked shots per game (2.16).
CONFERENCE LEADERS: As a team, the Coyotes lead the Cascade Conference
in total rebounds, least opponents rebounds, rebound margin, and blocked shots
– but rank eighth in the league in turnovers.
Individually, Kasey Hooter leads the loop in field goal percentage and
is third in rebounds per game (8.9), with Heidi Goicoechea ranking third in
free throw percentage (.808), sixth in scoring average (13.9), and eighth in
three-point percentage (.391). Michelle
Dyreng leads all CCC players in blocked shots per game, while point-guard Krystal
Thacker (Elko, Nev. / BYU-Idaho) is fifth in the loop in assists per
game (4.0). Rounding out the group is
Dani Cotterell, who is third in the CCC in three-pointers per game and sixth in
three-point percentage (.398).
EASTERN HEADED TO TOWN,
BEATING THE DRUMS: The hottest women’s
basketball team in the Cascade Conference heads to Caldwell this weekend, as Eastern
Oregon makes their shortest CCC trip of the season. The Mountaineers (18-2, 12-1 CCC) have won 11
games in a row, elevating themselves to No. 20 in the NAIA Division II – the highest
any CCC team has been during the 2003-04 season. Utilizing 40-minutes of full-court pressure, Eastern averages 75
points a game, while forcing nearly 25 turnovers a night. This was the case in the earlier meeting
between the clubs in La Grande, as the Lady ‘Yotes coughed the ball up 28 times
in a 65-56 loss. Jaime Jo Cant (12.9
ppg) leads a balanced scoring attack that features seven players averaging at
least seven points a game. Two
starters, Tricia Haddock (10.9 ppg) and Cory Nelson (8.9 ppg) – each hail from
the Treasure Valley, Haddock from Parma and Nelson from Homedale. The visitors have had Albertson’s number
recently, winning five of the last six meetings – including the last two in
Caldwell. However, the Lady ‘Yotes hold
a 13-6 all-time 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.
BASEBALL: Coyotes
preparing for season opener next weekend at San Francisco State
COMING UP: at
San Francisco State, doubleheaders on Feb. 14-15.
SNOW HAMPERS TRAINING: The Coyote hardballers have yet to set foot on
Simplot Stadium’s turf this winter, as Mother Nature’s snow has sent the team
indoors in preparation for next weekend’s season opener. Albertson has been working out in the J.A.
Albertson Activities Center, along with in the batting cage at the stadium –
but to date, no field work.
POSSIBLE ROTATION: If things go as planned look for senior Brad
Burrow (Taylorsville, Utah / College of So. Idaho) in Game 1 of the
San Francisco State series, with Matt Bergstrom (Hermiston, Ore. /
Hermiston HS) tossing the nightcap.
Game 3 would have Mike Moser (Arlington, Wash. / Bellevue CC) getting
the nod, with the finale seeing Matt Zachary (Bellevue, Idaho /
Treasure Valley CC) making his Coyote debut.
HOME OPENER: Albertson
will then head for four games at the Cannon Building Supply Tournament in
Lewiston from Feb. 20-22, before opening up the home schedule on Thursday, Feb.
26 vs. Central Washington. The Coyotes
will then host Whitworth in a pair of twinbills on Feb. 28-29.
SOFTBALL: Lady
‘Yotes to open exhibition season on Feb. 19, home schedule on Feb. 26.
NEXT WEEK: Season
preview of the third season of women’s fastpitch softball
- ALBERTSON -