Weekly Recap 2-23

Bluffton downs Manchester to win first Heartland Conference game of season, at Defiance on Tuesday for HCAC tournament

 

By Ben Risinger, SID

February 23, 2004

   The Bluffton College women’s basketball team (2-23, 1-13 HCAC) split on the last week of the regular season. The Beavers were downed on Wednesday by Defiance 95-49 and picked up their first Heartland Conference victory on Saturday when they defeated Manchester 53-51.
   Bluffton will be seventh seed going into the HCAC tournament on Tuesday. The Beavers will be placed with second seed Defiance College. Tip off for the game is scheduled for 8 pm at Defiance. The winner of the game will play at Franklin College on Friday against the winner of the sixth seed Manchester/second seed Anderson game at 6 pm.

DEFIANCE 95, BLUFFTON 49
   BLUFFTON, OHIO – The Bluffton College women’s basketball team (1-23, 0-13 HCAC) were defeated by rival Defiance College (18-6, 10-3 HCAC) 95-49 Wednesday night.
   Early in the game Defiance took control and never looked back.  The Yellow Jackets jumped out to a 19-3 lead in the first eight minutes of play.  Bluffton kept themselves in the game over the next four minutes with Senior Lindsay Bacon (Troy/Troy) connecting on four three-point shots and bring Bluffton to within 15 points of Defiance.  However, the Beavers would go cold the rest of the half and only manage two more points.  The halftime score was Defiance 57, Bluffton 17.
   In the second half the two teams traded baskets back and forth, but the Beavers could not close the Defiance lead.  Freshman Tanya Rickenberg (Defiance/Paulding) shook off a cold start to net 17 points, with 14 coming in the second half.  Rickenberg also led the team in rebounds with seven and chipped in six assists.  Bacon rounded off double-figure scoring for Bluffton with 12 points.

BLUFFTON 53, MANCHESTER 51
   BLUFFTON, OHIO – The Bluffton College women’s basketball team (2-23, 1-13 HCAC) defeated Manchester College (4-21, 1-13 HCAC) 53-51 Saturday afternoon in Founders Hall.
   The Beavers will travel to Defiance on Tuesday for the first round of the Heartland Conference tournament. Game time has yet to be determined.
   With one minute left in regulation, the Beavers owned a 51-49 lead over the Spartans. A quick layup by Manchester’s Deanna Quinn tied the game, 51-51 with ten seconds on the clock. Bluffton took a timeout with ten seconds left to collect their thoughts for the final shot. Freshman Tanya Rickenberg (Defiance/Paulding) took the ball and shot a quick jumper with three seconds left, grabbed her own rebound and hit the game winning jump shot.
   “They (team) deserve this. They never gave up all year long,” Bluffton coach Amanda Curtis said. “This is great momentum for us going into the tournament at Defiance.”
   Bluffton owned the lead for the entire game after being down 4-0 and 6-5 very early in the contest. In the first half of play the Beavers widened their lead to as much as twelve points, late in the half 28-16. The halftime score was 28-21 in favor of Bluffton. In the second half, the Spartans would make a late run, but fall short at the end.
   Senior Lindsay Bacon (Troy/Troy) led Bluffton with 14 points on the day. Rickenberg threw in her third double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds and a team high five assists. The freshman started every game this season for the Beavers. Freshman Jillian Jarvis (Lima/Shawnee) posted a career high 12 rebounds. Senior Kelsey Studer (Delta/Delta) finished with nine points and six rebounds in her final home contest.
   “I have to give credit to our two seniors, they have been great leaders on and off the court,” Curtis said. “This was a great way to finish for their last home game. They’ve done a good job of keeping everyone focused and working hard.”
   Beavers shot 33 percent for the game, compared to Manchester’s 31 percent. The Spartans pulled down 52 rebounds to Bluffton’s 41.

Beavers in the Heartland Conference
   As a team Bluffton ranks second in the conference in blocked shots, averaging 5.28 per game.  Freshman Tanya Rickenberg continues to rank high in several Heartland Conference categories. Rickenberg ranks 6th in the conference in scoring (14.6 points per game), 10th in rebounding (5.6 per game), 2nd in assists (4.08 per game), 5th in defensive rebounding (4.44 per game) and 14th in free throw percentage (71 percent). Sophomore Karin Schaller ranks second in the country in blocked shots, averaging 5.48 blocks per game (leads HCAC). Schaller ranks 19th in scoring (9.7 points per game), 3rd in rebounding (9.9 boards per game), 12th in field goal percentage (43 percent), 4th in offensive rebounds (2.95 per game) and leads the conference in defensive rebounds, averaging 6.95 per game. Schaller has been out for the past two weeks due to a knee injury. Senior Lindsay Bacon is tied for 12th in scoring (11.8 points per game) and 2nd in 3-point field goals made, averaging 2.08 per game.