WICHITA, Kan. - The Newman women's basketball team will continue its 2011-12 campaign Tuesday, hosting the undefeated Midwestern State Mustangs. Tip-time for the contest is slated for 5:30 p.m. inside Newman's Fugate Gymnasium.. The game will be broadcast in Wichita on KGSO, 1410 AM.
Meet the Jets...
Newman returns six players off a 2010-11 squad that won the school's first-ever Heartland Conference regular season championship, and finished with a 19-8 record on the season and a 9-1 mark against Heartland Conference opponents. Newman's first-ever women's basketball post-season run was cut short when fourth-seeded St. Edward's knocked the Jets out of the Heartland Conference Championship tournament with a 77-58 semi-final win.
Tasha Cannon carried the Jets through much of the 2010-11 season, and picked up where she left off in the team's opener, scoring 15 points and adding nine rebounds in a 65-58 win over Emporia State on Friday. The junior averaged 15.0 points per game in 2010-11, and shot at a .561 clip from beyond the arc. She was recognized for her efforts by being named the Heartland Conference Newcomer of the Year.
Cannon is joined in the Newman starting line-up by fellow returner Samantha Soyez (3.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg), and three NCAA Div. 1 transfers.
Anna Sonka (Toledo),
Satoria Bell (Temple) and
Alina Voronenko (Kansas State) will round out the Jets' projected starting five in the contest.
Last Time Out...
Newman opened its 2011-12 campaign in historic fashion, picking up the school's first-ever win over perennial MIAA powerhouse Emporia State.
Satoria Bell posted 22 points in her Newman debut, while
Tasha Cannon added 10 and
Alex Adekunle posted a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double in the 65-58 win over the Hornets.
Heartland Conference Player of the Week...
Satoria Bell was named the Heartland Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Week for her role in Newman's 65-58 win over Emporia State on Friday. The senior from Philadelphia, who transferred to Newman from Temple University, scored 22 points while adding three rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block in Newman's first-ever win over the Hornets.
Scouting Midwestern State...
The Mustangs bring an impressive resume into Tuesday's game, and have yet to lose in two outings thus far in the 2011-12 season. MSU stunned Texas-Arlington for a 67-56 exhibition win on Nov. 8 in Arlington, Texas., then flirted with the century mark in a 98-76 win over Heartland Conference foe Texas A&M International on Saturday in Wichita Falls, Texas.
Midwestern State is led offensively by Savannah Carver, a 5-10 seinior guard who went 6-for-17 from the field, drained three triples and added eight free throws on her way to 23 points in Saturday's win over TAMIU. Kirsti Degelia, a 5-8 sophomore guard added 18 points while Cierra Thompson, a 6-0 senior forward threw rode a 6-for-9 effort from the free throw line to record 10 points in the win.
Skylar Warrick and Ashley Rush led MSU's rebounders Saturday afternoon. Warrick, a 6-0 sophomore forward, grabbed a team-best eight boards, while Rush, a 5-6 junior guard snagged seven rebounds in the contest.
A Series is Born...
Tuesday's meeting will be just the second in a young series between the Jets and the Mustangs. Newman won the only other contest in the series, picking up a 73-71 win over MSU on the Mustangs' home court inside D.L. Ligon Coliseum on Jan. 2, 2011 in Wichita Falls, Texas. This will be the first meeting between Midwestern State and Newman in Wichita.
Soles 4 Souls...
Admission to Tuesday afternoon's contest will be free to all who donate a pair of gently worn shoes to the Newman University athletic department's Soles 4 Souls initiative. For more information on Soles 4 Souls, visit
www.soles4souls.org
Jets on the Air....
Wednesday's contest will be broadcast in the Wichita metro area on KGSO - 1410 AM. After spending the 2010-11 season in the color commentary chair, Jimmy Chavez will take the reigns as the play-by-play voice of the Jets for the 2011-12 season.
