December 2005
Lady Bulldogs Compete in Hawaii Tournament
Wednesday, December 28 2005
The University of Montana-Western Lady Bulldog basketball team travels to Hawaii for two games at the Hawaiian Holiday Classic at Kailua Hawaii, December 29-31.
The seven-team tournament field includes Western, MSU-Northern, Cumberland University, North Georgia, Olivet Nazarene, Pikeville College and the University of the Cumberlands.
Western plays Cumberlands Thursday, December 29 and Pikeville on Friday, December 30.
The Lady Bulldogs are 13-1 on the season and ranked 5th in the NAIA, Division I Top-25. Western’s last action was a 70-90 exhibition loss to Idaho State.
The University of the Cumberlands is 6-5 on the season and ranked 25th in the nation. Their last game was a 71-73 loss to Shawnee State University.
Pikeville is 8-6 on the season and ranked 23 in the nation. Their last game was a 61-68 home loss to the University of Rio Grande.
“We are looking forward to our trip to Hawaii and competing in the Hawaiian Holiday Classic,” said Western coach Kevin Engellant. “The trip will be a lot of fun, but we need to take care of business on the basketball court. We face two quality teams from the Mid-South Conference. Both opponents, University of the Cumberlands and Pikeville College, are ranked in the Top 25. They have good size in the post and quickness and athleticism on the perimeter. Defense and rebounding are two areas we really need to focus on as we get ready for the conference season. We've had a very successful non-conference season and it would be nice to win a couple more games heading into our conference opener next weekend.”
The Lady Bulldogs return home to host MSU-Northern on Friday, January 6 and the University of Great Falls on Saturday, January 7 in the opening weekend of Frontier Conference play.
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Lady Dawgs Fall to Idaho State
Wednesday, December 21 2005
The Lady Bulldogs held their own against NCAA Division I Idaho State in a 70-90 exhibition lost. The game will not count on Western's overall record.
Western came out red-hot against ISU and led 13-4 early. Idaho State changed from a man-to-man defense to a zone and took control of the game. The Lady Bulldogs last lead came at the 12:31 mark as they led 19-18.
Idaho State led at the half 44-34 and outscored the Lady Bulldogs 46-36 in the second half.
Becky O'Neil led Western with 14 points followed by Crystal Kain and Megan Schmitz with 12 each and Billi Suhr with 10
Western returns to action after Christmas.
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Lady Bulldogs Play at Idaho State
Monday, December 19 2005
The University of Montana Western Lady Bulldog basketball team travels to Pocatello, Idaho for an exhibition game against Idaho State University, Tuesday, December 20. Tip-off is 7:05 p.m. from Reed Gym. The game will not count on Western’s win-loss record.
The game will broadcast in Southwest Montana on KDBM-AM, 1490 on the AM dial and over the internet on sportsjuice.com.
Western is 13-1 on the season and ranked 5th in the latest NAIA, Division I Top-25. The Lady Bulldogs had this past weekend off.
Idaho State, an NCAA Division I team, is 4-5 on the season. The Lady Bengals lost at home to Oregon 89-69 last Thursday night.
“This game will be a big challenge for us before the Christmas break,” said Western coach Kevin Engellant. “Idaho State is a very talented and athletic team. They rely a lot on the 3-point shot, so we need to make sure we find their shooters and limit their looks from the perimeter. Idaho State is a very explosive team, averaging 80
points a game. They have six players averaging 10 points or more so we will have to be ready to play good defense for 40 minutes.”
Becky O’Neil leads three players scoring in double figures for Western. O’Neil averages 17.6 points followed by Megan Schmitz with 15 and Katherine Sunwall with 12.9.
The Lady Bulldogs are averaging 75.6 points a game while giving up 58.8 points per game.
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Lady Bulldogs Win Two in Oregon
Wednesday, December 14 2005
The Lady Bulldogs raised their record to 13-1 with a pair of wins at the Aramark Holiday Classic at La Grande, Oregon.
On Friday night, Western's strong inside play carried the Lady Bulldogs to a 66-52 win over Albertson College. Western scored 40 of their 66 points in the paint. The Lady Bulldogs led 32-14 at the half.
Megan Schmitz led the the Lady Bulldogs with 21 points followed by Becky O'Neil with 20.
On Saturday night, Western edged host Eastern Oregon 65-64. The Lady Bulldogs led by 16 at one point in the first half only to Eastern mount a comeback to cut their lead to 37-29 at the half-time break. In the second half, Eastern outscored the Lady Bulldogs 35-28.
In the second half, Eastern Oregon mounted another comeback and this one gave them the lead With just minutes remaining, Strong defensive play in the game's final two minutes carried Western to the narrow win.
The win was also a milestone for Lady Bulldog coach Kevin Engellant. It was his 200th career victory.
Becky O'Neil led the team in scoring with 20 points followed by Megan Schmitz with 17 and Katherine Sunwall with 11.
Western has the weekend off and will return to action on Tuesday, December 20 when they travel to Pocatello, Idaho for an exhibition game against Idaho State.
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Lady Bulldogs at Eastern Oregon Holiday Tournament
Wednesday, December 7 2005
The University of Montana Western Lady Bulldog basketball team travels to LaGrande, Oregon to compete in the 2nd Eastern Oregon University Holiday Classic Friday, Dec. 9 and Saturday, Dec. 10.
Eastern Oregon, Western, Rocky Mountain and Albertson College comprise the tournament field.
The Lady Bulldogs face Albertson College Friday at 5:00 p.m. and Eastern Oregon Saturday at 7:00 p.m.
Western is 11-1 on the season and ranked 8th in the latest NAIA Division I Top 25.
Albertson is 5-5 on the season. One of their losses was a 76-62 loss to Western at the Westminster Tournament in October. Western won the last four meetings between the two schools and leads in the overall series 8-2. Jori Grady leads Albertson with 16.7 points a game followed by Kim Strunk with 13.8. Albertson averages 69.2 points per game while giving up 70.3.
Eastern Oregon is 7-1 on the season and have won seven in a row after a 56-78 loss to UM-Western in their season opening game last month. Heidi Horobioski leads Eastern in scoring with 14 points a game followed by Christie Weaver with 13.5. Eastern averages 68.6 points per game while giving up 57.6.
“Going on the road this weekend and playing Albertson and Eastern Oregon will be another good test for us,” said Western coach Kevin Engellant. “Even though we've beaten these teams earlier in the season, we will have to play well to come away with two wins this weekend in LaGrande. Both teams have good perimeter shooters and several players who are capable of having big nights. Eastern Oregon is playing well and have won seven games in a row since their season-opening loss against us in Dillon. This weekend we will need to play good defense for 40 minutes, take care of the basketball and control the boards.”
Four players are averaging in double figures for the Lady Bulldogs led by Becky O’Neil with 16.7 points per game. Megan Schmitz is averaging 14.3, Katherine Sunwall with 12.5 and Crystal Kain with 10.3. O’Neil and Sunwall lead the team in rebounding with 8.7 and 7.7 respectively. Western is averaging 77 points per game and giving up 58.8.
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Lady Bulldogs Rout Johnson and Wales
Friday, December 2 2005
The University of Montana-Western Lady Bulldogs rolled over the Johnson and Wales University Wildcats 92-48 in women’s non-conference college basketball game from Dillon’s Straugh Gymnasium.
The win moved Western to 11-1 overall while Johnson and Wales fell to 0-9.
The Lady Bulldogs jumped out to a 7-2 lead. Johnson and Wales answered with a three-point field goal to cut the lead to two, but that was as close as the Wildcats would come. Western led 47-19 at the half and outscored Johnson and Wales 45-29 in the second half.
Six Lady Bulldogs scored in double figures led by Lindsey Scott with 16. Becky O’Neil added 14 followed by Katherine Sunwall with 13, Crystal Kain with 11 and Billis Suhr and Megan Schmitz with 10 apiece.
Jessica Miller was the only Wildcat scoring in double figures as she scored 10.
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Lady Bulldogs Host Johnson and Wales
Thursday, December 1 2005
The University of Montana-Western Lady Bulldog basketball team hosts Johnson and Wales University from Denver in a women’s non-conference college basketball game, Friday, December 2. Tip-off is 6:00 p.m. from the Straugh Gymnasium.
The game will broadcast locally on KDBM-AM, 1490 on the AM-Dial and on sportsjuice.com.
Western is 10-1 on the season after going 3-0 at the Sarsfield Classic last week in Butte. The Lady Bulldogs beat three nationally ranked teams in the holiday tourney. Western downed #22 Campbellsville University 83-33, #25 Black Hills State 82-70 and #7 Oklahoma City 79-75.
Johnson and Wales is 0-8 on the season. Their last game was Nov. 26 when they lost to Kansas Wesleyan University 56-88. This will be the first time the two teams have met.
“It will be good to finally be at home,” said Western coach Kevin Engellant. “We've had some tough games and some very good wins the past month. There are not many games left before the conference season, so we need to continue to get more consistent both offensively and defensively. It is important that we continue to get balanced scoring from the post and the perimeter. I really like the attitude and work ethic of this team. Even though we have several new faces this year, our team chemistry has been very good.”
Four players average in double figures for the Lady Bulldogs. Becky O’Neil leads with 17.5 ppg followed by Megan Schmitz with 14.7, Katherine Sunwall with 12.4 and Crystal Kain with 10.2. O’Neil leads the team in rebounding with 8.8 per game followed by Sunwall with 8. Western averages 75.9 points per game while giving up 59.8.
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