yote notes - edition 18

COMING UP: Cascade Conference Tournament – quarterfinal vs. Southern Oregon, Tuesday, 7 p.m

LAST WEEK: vs. Concordia (W 54-46), vs. Warner Pacific (W 62-56)

LIVE STATS/LIVE VIDEO:  Tuesday’s Cascade Conference Tournament game will have both Live Stats and Live Video available for fans unable to make it to the Activities Center.  The Live Video can be accessed online at http://www.uppersports.com/broadcast_iframe/4415 with C of I SID Mike Safford calling the play-by-play.  Live Stats, sponsored by the Sprint Store in Meridian (2100 E. Fairview Ave, 855-9910), are available online at http://zeus.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/livestats/xlive.htm.

LADY YOTES EARN NO. 2 SEED TO CCC TOURNAMENT: With their wins over Concordia and Warner Pacific, the Yotes secured the No. 2 seed into the CCC Tournament – finishing one game back of league champion, Corban.  The tournament will be held at campus sites Tuesday, Friday, and next Monday – with the highest seeds remaining hosting.  Corban claimed the first of two berths to the NAIA Division II National Tournament with the regular-season crowd, with the winner of the postseason tournament earning the second berth (if Corban wins the CCC Tournament, their opponent in the title game will earn the second berth).

HISTORY IN THE PLAYOFFS: The 2011-12 season marks the 13th-straight season that the Lady Yotes have advanced to the playoffs, the 16th time in 17 years since women’s basketball returned to the College in 1995.  The C of I has posted a 23-20 all-time record in the postseason, including a 17-14 record in their 15 trips to the CCC Tournament.  The squad has advanced to the CCC title game in 2000, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 – winning the crowd with a 70-67 victory over Eastern Oregon in 2010.  The Yotes have advanced to six previous NAIA National Tournaments, posting a 6-6 all-time record – including a trip to the national quarterfinals in 2000 and a trip to the national title game in 2001.

YOTES CLIMB TO NO. 20 IN NAIA POLL: Wins over Concordia and Warner Pacific helped the Coyotes climb three spots in the latest NAIA Division II Top-25 poll, jumping to No. 20 in the tabulation, released on Monday.  The C of I was one of three CCC teams in the poll – as Corban was ranked No. 10, and Eastern Oregon at No. 25.  It marks the highest poll position since the 2010-11 preseason ranking, when the Yotes were No. 12.

NATIONAL TOURNAMENT TEAMS: 21 teams will earn spots to the NAIA Tournament through their respective conferences, with one host berth (Morningside or Briar Cliff) and 10 at-large bids available.  Currently, seven teams – Tennessee Wesleyan, Corban, Concordia (Neb.), Friends, Indiana Wesleyan, Grand View, and Davenport have all earned berths to nationals.  The final NAIA Top-25 poll on Feb. 29 will determine the at-large berths to the event, held at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa, March 7-13.

HOME HAS BEEN FRIENDLY TO LADY YOTES: The Lady Yotes have had success at home this season, posting an 11-1 record on their own hardwood – including their first undefeated season in league play since the 2000-01 season.  In the postseason, the J.A. Albertson Activities Center has been kind to The C of I, posting a 13-1 all-time playoff record at home, including a 10-0 record under head coach Reagan Rossi.

ABOUT SOUTHERN OREGON: Making the long trip to Caldwell for the quarterfinal match-up is rival Southern Oregon, a staple in the postseason.  The Raiders (14-15) are looking to right the ship after a tough 2012 portion of the schedule, as the team has lost three-straight and eight of their previous 10 games.  SOU provides a tough match-up, as Lynn Kennedy’s squad plays at an uptempo pace – forcing 22 turnovers per game.  Shooting woes have been the issue for the Raiders, as the squad converts just 34-percent of their field goal attempts and 28-percent of their three-point tries.  Haley Newell (10.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg) and Josi McDermott (9.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg) lead the team in scoring – both both players have played minimal minutes in SOU’s last four games.  Forward Nalani Hernandez (6.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg) has had success in both games vs. C of I, averaging 12 points and nine rebounds vs. the Yotes.  It is the 41st meeting between the teams, with the Yotes holding a 22-18 series edge, including eight straight wins.

PLAYOFF HISTORY VS. SOUTHERN: Southern and The C of I have meet five previous times in postseason play, with the home team winning each contest.  Each of the Coyote home wins came in the CCC semifinals – in 2000 (66-55), in 2009 (97-88 in OT), and in 2010 (75-57), while both SOU wins came in the CCC championship game – in 2002 (75-62) and 2008 (82-72 in OT).

OTHER TOURNAMENT GAMES: All CCC quarterfinal games will have 7 p.m. (local time) tip-offs, with top-seeded Corban hosting Evergreen, third-seeded Eastern Oregon hosting Northwest, and fourth-seeded Warner Pacific hosting Oregon Tech.  The two highest remaining seeds will host semifinal games on Friday night, with the championship game set for Monday.

UNDER 50 STREAK HITS 35: The Lady Yotes held Concordia on Friday to 46 points, the ninth time this season they’ve held a team under the 50 point mark.  It marked the 35th-straight win by the squad when holding a team to 49-or-fewer points –dating back to a 40-38 loss to Corban on Jan. 26, 2006.  The C of I has now won 77 of their last 78 games when holding a team under 50 points and has an all-time record of 105-2 in such games.

HUGE WEEKEND FOR FAKAHAFUA: It was a breakout weekend for the Yotes Tina Fakahafua (Salt Lake City, Utah / Coll. of Southern Utah), as the junior averaged 13 points and 15 rebounds in the two wins.  Against Concordia, Fakahafua had a career-high 17 rebounds – the most rebounds since Christon Vander Esch logged 19 rebounds against Southern Oregon in the 2009 CCC Tournament.  Against Warner Pacific, she added her second double-double of the year, leading the way with 17 points. 

WHERE SHE STANDS ON THE ALL-TIME LISTS: Head coach Reagan Rossi  ranks No. 4 all-time in CCC women’s basketball victories – and is one of only five coaches to have won 190-or-more games.  Eastern Oregon head coach Anji Weissenfluh leads the list with 242 wins, followed by Corban’s Terry Williams (223), former Southern Oregon coach Shirley Huyett (205), Rossi (203), and former Northwest Nazarene head coach Roger Schmidt (190).  Rossi ranks No. 22 on the active wins list in the NAIA Division II and is No. 15 on the active win-percentage list among NAIA Division II coaches.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: As a team, the Lady Yotes lead the CCC in steals (10.8), ranking third in scoring defense (57.3), defensive field goal percentage (.353), blocked shots (4.0),  rebound margin (+5.1), and turnover margin (+2.2).  The squad is No. 4 in rebounds (42.9), No. 5 in scoring margin (+7.1), field goal percentage (.391), and assists (12.9), No. 6 in free throw percentage (.688), No. 7 in scoring offense (64.4), and No. 10 in three-point percentage (.278).  Individually, four players are in the Top-10 – with Laura Geis (Frenchtown, Mont. / U. of Montana Western) No. 3 in blocks (2.4), No. 8 in rebounds (6.5), and No. 10 in field goal percentage (.438).  Felicity Jones (Tremonton, Utah / Coll. of Southern Idaho) is No. 7 in steals (2.2) and No. 9 in scoring average (12.9), Tina Fakahafua is No. 7 in rebounds (6.9), and Katelin Shannon (Caldwell, Idaho / Vallivue HS) is No. 7 in free throw percentage (.798).

LEAGUE LEADERS: Scoring Average –Jessalyn Jackson (NU) 20.1, Katie Steigleman (CRB) 17.5, Chelsey Christensen (WP ) 15.4, Danielle Swain (ESC) 15.0, Lindsey Shearer (NCU) 14.1;  Rebound Average – Jackson 11.9, Tara Vanweerdhuizen (CRB) 10.9, Swain 9.6, Shearer (NCU) 9.3, Korrie Bourn (EOU) 7.2; Assist Average – Emily Tsugawa (CRB) 6.9, Nichole Jackson (WPC) 5.8,Domi Mendezona (NU) 5.2, Cameryn Calhoun (WP) 3.9, Shearer 3.6.

RECORD BOOK: Three C of I players are currently in the Top-10 all time record book –as Katelin Shannon ranks No. 4 in career steals (192) and No. 8 in both free throws made (249) and attempted (324). Meghan Hughes (Eagle, Idaho / Bishop Kelly HS) is No. 9 in games played (112) and field goals made (322), ranking No. 10 in field goals attempted (825), while Laura Geis is No. 5 in blocked shots (64). Geis has already cracked the single-season blocked shot list, ranking fourth heading into the postseason.

GAME RECAP – C OF I 54, CONCORDIA 46: Felicity Jones scored 13 points and Tina Fakahafua grabbed a season-high 17 rebounds, as The C of I earned a 54-46 victory over Concordia University on Friday night.  It wasn't easy early, as the Cavaliers got two baskets each from Kayla Bustos and Lexi Amundsen, part of a 9-2 run, to take a 15-10 lead with 8:05 to play in the first half. The Yotes would clamp down defensively, holding CU to 1-of-10 shooting and five turnovers the rest of the frame, getting a pair of Jones buckets and a Fakahafua three-point play to cap a 13-0 run, as the hosts led 23-17 at the break.  A Jones three to open the second half began an 11-4 run that gave the Yotes their largest lead of the night at 34-21, before the Cavs began to whittle away - getting back-to-back treys from Gabi Beyer and Rachel Scarpelli to cut the margin to 36-31, getting within 42-38 on a pair of Scarpelli free throws with 7:13 left. The Yotes rallied, as Jones, Fakahafua, and Laura Geis each scored on consecutive possessions to push the lead back to 10 and The C of I hit free throws down the stretch to secure the season sweep of the Cavs.  Despite hitting just 32-percent of their shots, the Coyotes used a commanding 49-31 edge on the glass in the win, as Geis recorded 10 points, eight rebounds, and four blocks. Fakahafua scored nine points to go along with her big rebound night, with Katelin Shannon scoring eight points, with six rebounds, four assists, and four steals. Courtney May had 11 points to lead CU, but the Cavaliers committed 27 turnovers in the loss.

GAME RECAP – C OF I 62, WARNER PACIFIC 56: Felicity Jones' 10-foot jumper with just over a minute to play sparked a 10-3 run to close the contest, as The C of I completed their first perfect CCC season at home since 2001, defeating Warner Pacific, 62-56, inside the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.  A game which featured nine ties and 19 lead changes saw the Knights take a 53-52 lead with four minutes to go on a pair of Kelsey Mattsen free throws. Following a pair of defensive stops, Laura Geis recovered an errant WP pass and was fouled, converting two free throws to give the Yotes the lead for good. Jones then took over, isolated at half court, the junior drove into the paint and converted the fade-away jumper to push The C of I lead to 56-53. A turnover and a missed jumper allowed the Yotes to cash in at the foul line, making 6-of-8 free throws down the stretch to ice the game.  WP jumped out to a 15-10 lead early on, but a three-point play from Tina Fakahafua and a Kylie Hardison (Chubbuck, Idaho / Coll. of Southern Idaho) trey fueled a 10-0 C of I run to give the Yotes the lead. The Knights would surge ahead on a Nichole Jackson three just before halftime, taking a 30-29 lead to the locker room. A Jones fastbreak basket gave the Lady Yotes a 48-43 lead with eight minutes left, but the Knights rallied with six-straight points, including a Cameryn Calhoun triple, to retake the lead.  Fakahafua had 17 points and 13 rebounds in the win, with Jones adding 16 points and Katelin Shannon 11 - with the Yotes hitting 13-of-15 second half free throws. Calhoun and Katie Smith each had 16 points in the loss for the Knights, who were playing without leading scorer Chelsey Christensen.

ABOUT THE COACH: Reagan Rossi is in her 11th season as head coach of the Lady Yotes. The native of Mukwonago, Wis. has compiled a 203-131 overall record, with 11 consecutive appearances in the CCC Tournament, two CCC regular-season titles, and three-consecutive NAIA Division II National Tournament appearances. In 2008-09, she led the Coyotes to a school record 29-5 season, sharing their first CCC title since 2001 - earning a berth to the NAIA Division II National Tournament. The team set a new school record with 21 consecutive wins, highest scoring average, and defeated Weber State for their first-ever NCAA Division I victory, climbing as high as No. 8 in the NAIA Top-25 poll. In 2009-10, her squad went 21-8, winning the CCC title outright, along with claiming their first-ever CCC Tournament championship, while last season, the Yotes advanced to the CCC Tournament title game and earned an automatic berth to the National Tournament.  She has coached a pair of second-team All-Americans and two third-team All-Americans, while 16 of her recruits have earned NAIA All-America Scholar-Athlete honors.   Rossi was no stranger to The C of I, as she was a member of Todd Corman's inaugural coaching staff for two seasons, and was on the bench when the Lady Yotes took to the floor for the first time on Nov. 4, 1995 against Carroll College, ending an 18-year hiatus of women's basketball at the school.   Rossi has an extensive background in coaching - having been an assistant coach at Georgetown (Ky.), a fellow NAIA institution, along with Morehead State (Ky.), an NCAA Division I program. Before coming to The C of I in 1995, Rossi was an assistant coach with the Skagway High School boys' varsity team in Skagway, Alaska.   A 1994 graduate of Saint Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa, Rossi played four years of basketball for the Queen Bees. Two of her teams qualified for the NAIA National Tournament, including the 1993-94 squad which advanced into the "Sweet Sixteen." She was the starting point-guard for two seasons, averaging ten points and six assists per game during her senior season. In 2006, she was inducted into the Mukwonago High School Hall of Fame.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: For more information on The C of I women’s basketball program, head to the official homepage of the Coyotes, http://www.collegeofidaho.edu/womensbasketball.