Murray State University Athletics
Racers Headed to Colorado for Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational
11/26/2008 6:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
The Tournament
The Murray State women's basketball team will be making the longest trek of the 2008-09 campaign when they travel to Fort Collins, Colo. over the Thanksgiving weekend to participate in the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational. This is the 15th season that Colorado State has hosted the tournament, and this year the other participating teams are No. 21 Florida State and Valparaiso. The Racers (2-2, 0-0 Ohio Valley Conference) drew the Seminoles of Florida State in the opening round of the tournament, with tip-off scheduled for 5 p.m., Friday, Nov. 28 at Moby Arena.
About Florida State
MSU will be the second team in a row that the No. 21 Seminoles will face from the Ohio Valley Conference. FSU defeated Southeast Missouri State, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 62-31, in its last game before the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational. The win moved the Seminoles to a 4-1 overall record on the season. The victory also moved 12th-year head coach Sue Semrau to a 183-153 coaching record with FSU.
FSU has three players averaging double-digit point totals in the 2008-09 campaign. Jacinta Monroe leads the Seminoles in both points and rebounds with her 17.4 points and 9.4 rebounds per game averages. The forward has also collected 10 blocks in five games and is shooting .603 (35-of-58) from the floor.
Cierra Bravard is next in the scoring column with 13.8 points per game. The center has also garnered 28 rebounds on the year, 16 offensive and 12 defensive. Tanee Davis-Cain is the final member of the FSU squad in double-digits, with her 11.2 points per game. Davis-Cain is the team's top three-point shooter, with a .313 (10-of-32) average.
The Seminoles are a strong shooting team, with a .434 (122-of-281) shooting percentage from the field this season. FSU doesn't rely too much on their three-point shots as they have attempted only 67 and connected on 17 (.254) this year. Despite having a clear advantage in the number of free-throw attempts on the season (120 to 77 by their opponents) the Seminoles are making only 57.5 percent of their trips to the charity stripe.
The Series
This will be the first meeting between the Racers and the Seminoles in the history of the programs. Either team that MSU draws on the second day of the tournament will also be the first meeting between programs in school history.
About Colorado State
The Rams head into the tournament with a 1-2 record after earning their first victory, Nov. 22 against Idaho, 69-60. After wining the 2008 Mountain West Tournament Championship, CSU is now under the tutelage of Kristen Holt, who has one year of experience as a head coach at Radford University. Like MSU Head Coach Rob Cross, Holt was an assistant for the Rams before being promoted to the head position for the 2008-09 campaign.
CSU has been starting three seniors, one junior, and one sophomore this season. Three of those starters are averaging double-digit point totals, with one more at nine points, and the fifth starter is leading the team in rebounds. Britney Minor is the current points leader with 12 points per game. She also adds 6.3 rebounds per game and is shooting .448 (13-29) from the floor. Minor is also getting to the free-throw line the most for CSU, with 14 of the team's 53 attempts. She has converted on 10 of those attempts for a .714 percentage.
Kandy Beemer is second on the team in scoring with 11 points per game. Most of her points come from beyond the arc, as she has converted seven of her 24 attempts (.292) from three-point range and adds only four more shots made on four more attempts from the field. Bonnie Barbee is the third member of the Rams averaging over 10 points per game, with 10.3.
Carine Reimink is the starter averaging nine points per game and is second on the team in rebounding, with 6.7 board per outing. She also has a .407 (11-of-27) shooting percentage. The final starter is Juanise Cornell, who is CSU's rebounding leader, with 7.3 rebounds per contest.
As a team the Rams are shooting .389 (75-of-193), while their opponents have a .432 (82-of-190) mark. CSU is winning the battle on the boards though, with 4.3 more rebounds per game than its opponents. The first 20-minutes of play has been better for the Rams, as they have scored 107 of their 201 points in the opening stanza and just 87 in the second and seven in overtime.
About Valparaiso
The Crusaders enter the tournament with a 1-1 overall record after falling to Central Michigan, Tuesday, Nov. 25. Valpo is led by Keith Freeman, who is in his 15th season with the Crusaders. He has amassed a 244-169 record at Valpo, and was the Mid-Continent Conference winningest-active coach before the team joined the Horizon League in 2007-08.
Agnieszka Kulaga is the leading scorer for the Crusaders with 23 points per game. She is shooting .643 (18-of-28) from the floor and .462 (6-or-13) from beyond the arc. Aimee Litka is next on the points list with an average of 17 points per outing. Litka also leads the team in rebounding with eight boards per game. She has a .478 (11-of-23) shooting percentage and a .563 (9-of-16) mark from three-point range.
Lauren Kenney is the final member on the Valpo roster to average more than 10 points per game, with 15. Kenney is shooting a team-high .737 (14-of-19) from the floor and has three blocks on the year. The next Crusader in the scoring column has 6.5 points per game.
As a team Valpo has a 51.4 percent (56-of-109) shooting percentage and a 43.9 percent (18-of-41) mark from beyond the arc. Their opponents have also had strong outings with a .440 (48-of-109) shooting percentage.
Despite the even 1-1 record, the Crusaders have an advantage over their opponents in the rebounding list. Valpo has garnered 71 rebounds to its opponents 59, and even out-rebounded CMU, 35-27.
Kokomo Konnection
Three former players from Kokomo High School in Indiana will have a reunion this weekend at the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational. MSU assistant coach Ashley Hayes, CSU assistant coach Tia Davis, and Valparaiso junior Whitney Farris all played their prep basketball at Kokomo High School. Hayes was a freshman when Davis was a senior and Farris was a freshman during Hayes' senior campaign.
Scoring Sensation
For the first time since 1988-89 the MSU women's basketball team recorded at least 100 points in two games in a single season, with their 100-68 win over Bethel and 103-53 win over Mid-Continent. This was the fourth time in school history that the Racers have tallied 100 or more points in a game in a single season. The 1988-89 team accomplished the feat three times, while the 1987-88 and 1981-82 squads did it twice.
The 103 points scored by MSU in the RSEC also set an arena record for the most points scored by a women's team in the building. The old record was 100 set in 2006 against Jacksonville State and tied this season against Bethel.
Phenomenal Freshman
In the Racers last outing the freshmen proved that they were going to be strong players for MSU. Four of the five recorded new career-high point totals, while they all recorded at least three new career bests.
Rachael Isom led the rookies in scoring with 10 points, while Mallory Schwab and Jana Roney added nine, and Kayla Lowe tallied three.
Schwab had the best game of her short career, recording career highs in every column except blocked shots. Besides her nine points she added five rebounds, two assists, two steals, three field-goals, two three-pointers, and one free-throw.
First Double-Double
Senior Ashley Hayes recorded the first double-double of the season for MSU against Alabama State. Hayes tallied 17 points and a season-high 13 rebounds against the Hornets.
Making Moves
Seniors Ashley Hayes and Amber Guffey started the 2008-09 campaign as the ninth and 11th best scorers in MSU history. With her 17 points against Alabama State, Hayes leapt up to the No. 7 position on MSU's All-Time Scoring charts. She started the game one point behind Monika Gadson in eighth (1,341 points) and seven behind Diane Oakley in seventh (1,344 points). Hayes will now be aiming for the No. 6 spot held by Stephanie Minor with 1,392 points (just 13 more).
Guffey also made a move up the scoring charts with her 25 points against the Hornets. She passed Karen Johnson for the No. 10 position on the scoring charts and now has 1,286 points. She will need 55 more to take the No. 8 spot from Gadson.
Record Setting Night
MSU's 100-68 win over Bethel saw several individual records set by both the Racer players and head coach. Head Coach Rob Cross earned his first official career victory with the win after earning victories as an acting head coach at MSU.
Senior Paige Guffey and junior Kayla Vance had career scoring nights, as each earned career-high point totals. Paige tallied 20 points, two more than her previous high of 18 against Alcorn State (12/2/05). Vance set her record in the first half of play and then added more in the second half, finishing the game with 11 points. Her previous high was three against Jacksonville State (2/2/08).
Hayes Nets Career High
Senior Ashley Hayes started the 2008-09 campaign like she ended the 2007-08 season. In the Racers last game against Duke in the NCAA Tournament the guard tallied 23 points, just four shy of her career-best. In the first game of her final season the Humboldt, Tenn., native set a new career-best when she garnered 31 points at Western Kentucky. Hayes shot .611 (11-18) from the floor and .429 (3-7) from beyond the arc.
Early Signing Period Successful
In his first season as head coach Rob Cross had no problems getting commitments for the 2009-10 campaign. Cross announced the signing of seven student-athletes Wednesday, Nov. 12.
The class has been ranked No. 54 in the nation by Blue Star Basketball and is one of a few non-BCS schools to make the list.
Cross signed:
Kayla Cunningham, F, 6-2, Calloway County (Ky.)
Tessa Elkins, G, 5-6, Lakota West (Ohio)
Jessica Holder, F, 6-2, Marshall County (Ky.)
Aubrey Minix, G, 5-9, Oregon-Davis (Ind.)
Candace Nevels, G, 5-9, Bolingbrook (Ill.)
Mariah Robinson, G, 5-8, Ohio County (Ky.)
Jessica Winfrey, F, 6-0, Marion (Ark.)
The group includes two local standouts (Cunningham, Holder), three recognized by ESPN.com (Elkins, Nevels, Winfrey), a player from the No. 2 ranked high school squad in the nation (Nevels), and five all-state honorees.
Challenging Road Ahead
The road to another trip to the OVC Championship game and to the NCAA Tournament will be tough again this season. MSU has nine non-conference games scheduled, including three against teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2008. Those teams include Western Kentucky, Miami (Ohio), and Florida State, which advanced to the second round.
“We schedule teams for non-conference play to challenge the team so they are prepared for conference action,” said head coach Rob Cross.
The Racers opened the season with a 78-95 loss to Western Kentucky, Nov. 14. Florida State will be the next big test at the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational hosted by Colorado State, Nov. 28-29.
“It will be challenging for this year's returners to repeat the success of last season,” Cross commented. “With the loss of three of the top five scorers and rebounders from a year ago we will expect the returners to increase their output and improve their leadership roles on the team.”
Upcoming Schedule
MSU will remain on the road for the next three outings. The Racers will open the OVC portion of the season next week with games against Eastern Kentucky (Dec. 4/4:30 p.m.) and Morehead State (Dec. 6/1 p.m.). The end of the road trip will be a stop to play Evansville (Dec. 14).
Quick Plays
Senior Ashley Hayes set a career best with five steals...junior Mallory Luckett garnered career highs in the points (8), rebounds (7), and field goals (3)...the Racers are 59-68 in regular-season tournament play dating back to the 1971-72 campaign...MSU will have three games in a row against opponents that they had never faced before...the streak started with Mid-Continent, Nov. 25 and will include both games at the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational.
The Murray State women's basketball team will be making the longest trek of the 2008-09 campaign when they travel to Fort Collins, Colo. over the Thanksgiving weekend to participate in the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational. This is the 15th season that Colorado State has hosted the tournament, and this year the other participating teams are No. 21 Florida State and Valparaiso. The Racers (2-2, 0-0 Ohio Valley Conference) drew the Seminoles of Florida State in the opening round of the tournament, with tip-off scheduled for 5 p.m., Friday, Nov. 28 at Moby Arena.
About Florida State
MSU will be the second team in a row that the No. 21 Seminoles will face from the Ohio Valley Conference. FSU defeated Southeast Missouri State, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 62-31, in its last game before the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational. The win moved the Seminoles to a 4-1 overall record on the season. The victory also moved 12th-year head coach Sue Semrau to a 183-153 coaching record with FSU.
FSU has three players averaging double-digit point totals in the 2008-09 campaign. Jacinta Monroe leads the Seminoles in both points and rebounds with her 17.4 points and 9.4 rebounds per game averages. The forward has also collected 10 blocks in five games and is shooting .603 (35-of-58) from the floor.
Cierra Bravard is next in the scoring column with 13.8 points per game. The center has also garnered 28 rebounds on the year, 16 offensive and 12 defensive. Tanee Davis-Cain is the final member of the FSU squad in double-digits, with her 11.2 points per game. Davis-Cain is the team's top three-point shooter, with a .313 (10-of-32) average.
The Seminoles are a strong shooting team, with a .434 (122-of-281) shooting percentage from the field this season. FSU doesn't rely too much on their three-point shots as they have attempted only 67 and connected on 17 (.254) this year. Despite having a clear advantage in the number of free-throw attempts on the season (120 to 77 by their opponents) the Seminoles are making only 57.5 percent of their trips to the charity stripe.
The Series
This will be the first meeting between the Racers and the Seminoles in the history of the programs. Either team that MSU draws on the second day of the tournament will also be the first meeting between programs in school history.
About Colorado State
The Rams head into the tournament with a 1-2 record after earning their first victory, Nov. 22 against Idaho, 69-60. After wining the 2008 Mountain West Tournament Championship, CSU is now under the tutelage of Kristen Holt, who has one year of experience as a head coach at Radford University. Like MSU Head Coach Rob Cross, Holt was an assistant for the Rams before being promoted to the head position for the 2008-09 campaign.
CSU has been starting three seniors, one junior, and one sophomore this season. Three of those starters are averaging double-digit point totals, with one more at nine points, and the fifth starter is leading the team in rebounds. Britney Minor is the current points leader with 12 points per game. She also adds 6.3 rebounds per game and is shooting .448 (13-29) from the floor. Minor is also getting to the free-throw line the most for CSU, with 14 of the team's 53 attempts. She has converted on 10 of those attempts for a .714 percentage.
Kandy Beemer is second on the team in scoring with 11 points per game. Most of her points come from beyond the arc, as she has converted seven of her 24 attempts (.292) from three-point range and adds only four more shots made on four more attempts from the field. Bonnie Barbee is the third member of the Rams averaging over 10 points per game, with 10.3.
Carine Reimink is the starter averaging nine points per game and is second on the team in rebounding, with 6.7 board per outing. She also has a .407 (11-of-27) shooting percentage. The final starter is Juanise Cornell, who is CSU's rebounding leader, with 7.3 rebounds per contest.
As a team the Rams are shooting .389 (75-of-193), while their opponents have a .432 (82-of-190) mark. CSU is winning the battle on the boards though, with 4.3 more rebounds per game than its opponents. The first 20-minutes of play has been better for the Rams, as they have scored 107 of their 201 points in the opening stanza and just 87 in the second and seven in overtime.
About Valparaiso
The Crusaders enter the tournament with a 1-1 overall record after falling to Central Michigan, Tuesday, Nov. 25. Valpo is led by Keith Freeman, who is in his 15th season with the Crusaders. He has amassed a 244-169 record at Valpo, and was the Mid-Continent Conference winningest-active coach before the team joined the Horizon League in 2007-08.
Agnieszka Kulaga is the leading scorer for the Crusaders with 23 points per game. She is shooting .643 (18-of-28) from the floor and .462 (6-or-13) from beyond the arc. Aimee Litka is next on the points list with an average of 17 points per outing. Litka also leads the team in rebounding with eight boards per game. She has a .478 (11-of-23) shooting percentage and a .563 (9-of-16) mark from three-point range.
Lauren Kenney is the final member on the Valpo roster to average more than 10 points per game, with 15. Kenney is shooting a team-high .737 (14-of-19) from the floor and has three blocks on the year. The next Crusader in the scoring column has 6.5 points per game.
As a team Valpo has a 51.4 percent (56-of-109) shooting percentage and a 43.9 percent (18-of-41) mark from beyond the arc. Their opponents have also had strong outings with a .440 (48-of-109) shooting percentage.
Despite the even 1-1 record, the Crusaders have an advantage over their opponents in the rebounding list. Valpo has garnered 71 rebounds to its opponents 59, and even out-rebounded CMU, 35-27.
Kokomo Konnection
Three former players from Kokomo High School in Indiana will have a reunion this weekend at the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational. MSU assistant coach Ashley Hayes, CSU assistant coach Tia Davis, and Valparaiso junior Whitney Farris all played their prep basketball at Kokomo High School. Hayes was a freshman when Davis was a senior and Farris was a freshman during Hayes' senior campaign.
Scoring Sensation
For the first time since 1988-89 the MSU women's basketball team recorded at least 100 points in two games in a single season, with their 100-68 win over Bethel and 103-53 win over Mid-Continent. This was the fourth time in school history that the Racers have tallied 100 or more points in a game in a single season. The 1988-89 team accomplished the feat three times, while the 1987-88 and 1981-82 squads did it twice.
The 103 points scored by MSU in the RSEC also set an arena record for the most points scored by a women's team in the building. The old record was 100 set in 2006 against Jacksonville State and tied this season against Bethel.
Phenomenal Freshman
In the Racers last outing the freshmen proved that they were going to be strong players for MSU. Four of the five recorded new career-high point totals, while they all recorded at least three new career bests.
Rachael Isom led the rookies in scoring with 10 points, while Mallory Schwab and Jana Roney added nine, and Kayla Lowe tallied three.
Schwab had the best game of her short career, recording career highs in every column except blocked shots. Besides her nine points she added five rebounds, two assists, two steals, three field-goals, two three-pointers, and one free-throw.
First Double-Double
Senior Ashley Hayes recorded the first double-double of the season for MSU against Alabama State. Hayes tallied 17 points and a season-high 13 rebounds against the Hornets.
Making Moves
Seniors Ashley Hayes and Amber Guffey started the 2008-09 campaign as the ninth and 11th best scorers in MSU history. With her 17 points against Alabama State, Hayes leapt up to the No. 7 position on MSU's All-Time Scoring charts. She started the game one point behind Monika Gadson in eighth (1,341 points) and seven behind Diane Oakley in seventh (1,344 points). Hayes will now be aiming for the No. 6 spot held by Stephanie Minor with 1,392 points (just 13 more).
Guffey also made a move up the scoring charts with her 25 points against the Hornets. She passed Karen Johnson for the No. 10 position on the scoring charts and now has 1,286 points. She will need 55 more to take the No. 8 spot from Gadson.
Record Setting Night
MSU's 100-68 win over Bethel saw several individual records set by both the Racer players and head coach. Head Coach Rob Cross earned his first official career victory with the win after earning victories as an acting head coach at MSU.
Senior Paige Guffey and junior Kayla Vance had career scoring nights, as each earned career-high point totals. Paige tallied 20 points, two more than her previous high of 18 against Alcorn State (12/2/05). Vance set her record in the first half of play and then added more in the second half, finishing the game with 11 points. Her previous high was three against Jacksonville State (2/2/08).
Hayes Nets Career High
Senior Ashley Hayes started the 2008-09 campaign like she ended the 2007-08 season. In the Racers last game against Duke in the NCAA Tournament the guard tallied 23 points, just four shy of her career-best. In the first game of her final season the Humboldt, Tenn., native set a new career-best when she garnered 31 points at Western Kentucky. Hayes shot .611 (11-18) from the floor and .429 (3-7) from beyond the arc.
Early Signing Period Successful
In his first season as head coach Rob Cross had no problems getting commitments for the 2009-10 campaign. Cross announced the signing of seven student-athletes Wednesday, Nov. 12.
The class has been ranked No. 54 in the nation by Blue Star Basketball and is one of a few non-BCS schools to make the list.
Cross signed:
Kayla Cunningham, F, 6-2, Calloway County (Ky.)
Tessa Elkins, G, 5-6, Lakota West (Ohio)
Jessica Holder, F, 6-2, Marshall County (Ky.)
Aubrey Minix, G, 5-9, Oregon-Davis (Ind.)
Candace Nevels, G, 5-9, Bolingbrook (Ill.)
Mariah Robinson, G, 5-8, Ohio County (Ky.)
Jessica Winfrey, F, 6-0, Marion (Ark.)
The group includes two local standouts (Cunningham, Holder), three recognized by ESPN.com (Elkins, Nevels, Winfrey), a player from the No. 2 ranked high school squad in the nation (Nevels), and five all-state honorees.
Challenging Road Ahead
The road to another trip to the OVC Championship game and to the NCAA Tournament will be tough again this season. MSU has nine non-conference games scheduled, including three against teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2008. Those teams include Western Kentucky, Miami (Ohio), and Florida State, which advanced to the second round.
“We schedule teams for non-conference play to challenge the team so they are prepared for conference action,” said head coach Rob Cross.
The Racers opened the season with a 78-95 loss to Western Kentucky, Nov. 14. Florida State will be the next big test at the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational hosted by Colorado State, Nov. 28-29.
“It will be challenging for this year's returners to repeat the success of last season,” Cross commented. “With the loss of three of the top five scorers and rebounders from a year ago we will expect the returners to increase their output and improve their leadership roles on the team.”
Upcoming Schedule
MSU will remain on the road for the next three outings. The Racers will open the OVC portion of the season next week with games against Eastern Kentucky (Dec. 4/4:30 p.m.) and Morehead State (Dec. 6/1 p.m.). The end of the road trip will be a stop to play Evansville (Dec. 14).
Quick Plays
Senior Ashley Hayes set a career best with five steals...junior Mallory Luckett garnered career highs in the points (8), rebounds (7), and field goals (3)...the Racers are 59-68 in regular-season tournament play dating back to the 1971-72 campaign...MSU will have three games in a row against opponents that they had never faced before...the streak started with Mid-Continent, Nov. 25 and will include both games at the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational.
Indiana State VS Murray State | MVC Baseball Tournament | Game Highlights
Friday, May 22
Evansville VS Murray State | Women's Basketball Game Highlights
Saturday, February 28
Head Coach Rechelle Turner | Racer Basketball | 2/26/26 Post Game Press Conference
Friday, February 27
Thomas & Pena | Racer Basketball | 2/26/26 Post Game Press Conference
Friday, February 27
