Bluffton falters as they drop two HCAC contests on week; Stallkamp posts double-double
By Ben Risinger, sports information director
January 18, 2005
The Bluffton University women’s basketball team (4-11, 1-3 HCAC) dropped both of their Heartland Conference matchups last week. The Beavers were defeated by Franklin College 75-57 and Transylvania University 56-45. The women’s team will host Mount St. Joseph on Jan. 19 (7:30 p.m. start) and then will travel to Anderson University on Jan. 22 (3 p.m. start).
Franklin College 75, Bluffton University 57
BLUFFTON, Ohio – The Bluffton University women’s basketball team (4-10, 1-2 HCAC) was defeated 75-57 by conference leader Franklin College (12-2, 3-0 HCAC) on Jan. 12.
Franklin jumped out to an early lead in the first half, 15-2, only to find Bluffton come back to squeeze the Grizzly lead to four points with five minutes left in the period. The halftime score was Franklin 39, Bluffton 27.
Bluffton showed good play in the second half but could not outdo the Grizzly lead. The Beavers closed the gap to single digits three times in the second but could not overcome Franklin’s defense as Bluffton committed six turnovers in the final five minutes. In the last minute of the game Franklin increased their lead from 11 points to 18 points as they capitalized on three steals and went 7-for-8 from the charity stripe. The final outcome would be Franklin 75, Bluffton 57.
Leading the way for Bluffton on the night was freshman Ashleigh Stallkamp (Paulding/Paulding) with 18 points. Sophomore Tanya Rickenberg (Paulding/Paulding) and senior Christina Champion (Oregon/Clay) posted 11 points each to end the double figure scoring. Champion led the team in assists with four which tied her career high. Senior Cara Young (Middletown/Madison) pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.
Transylvania University 56, Bluffton University 45
The Bluffton University women’s basketball team (4-11, 1-3 HCAC) was defeated by Transylvania University (12-2, 3-1 HCAC) 56-45 on Jan. 15.
Leading the way for the Beavers and posting her first career double-double was freshman Ashleigh Stallkamp (Paulding/Paulding) with 16 points, 13 rebounds and a team-high six steals. Sophomore Tanya Rickenberg (Paulding/Paulding) also threw in 16 points to end the double digit scoring. Junior Karin Schaller (Jenera/Arlington) posted 10 rebounds and three blocks.
In the first half of play the Beavers were down early on and fought hard to make up the deficit. At halftime the score was Transylvania 40, Bluffton 21. The second half proved much better for Bluffton as they squeezed the Pioneers’ lead down to six points twice. The Beavers used steady defense in the final period to score 11 points off of 10 Pioneer turnovers.
Bluffton shot 42 percent (8-of-19) from the field for the half compared to Transylvania’s 15 percent (4-of-26) shooting percentage. Even with the great comeback Bluffton was not able to take the game as they fell 56-45.
Leading the Beavers on the season
HCAC team statistics
The women’s team currently leads the Heartland Conference in blocked shots with 71 for the season (4.73 average per game). The Beavers lead the conference in offensive rebounds with 247 and rank second in the HCAC in defensive rebounds with 379.
Individual statistical leaders
Ashleigh Stallkamp leads Bluffton and ranks ninth in the conference with a 13.1 points per game average (197 total points) and posts 36 steals for the year to lead the Beavers and rank ninth in the HCAC. She is second on the squad with 86 rebounds (31 offensive, 55 defensive) to rank 15th in the conference. Tanya Rickenberg ranks second on the Beaver squad in points with a 11.2 points per game average (168 total points) that places her at 13th in the HCAC. For the year Rickenberg posts a .411 field goal percentage (58-of-141) to rank 10th in the conference. Karin Schaller leads both the team and HCAC in blocked shots with 43 (2.87 average per game) for the year. Schaller also leads the team in rebounding with 88 boards (31 offensive, 57 defensive) which places her at 13th in the conference.
