Women's Basketball Travels Down the Road to High Point
11/27/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 27, 2000
Winston-Salem, NC - Game #3
Wake Forest (1-1) vs. High Point (2-2
Monday, Nov. 27, 2000 * 7:00 pm * Millis Athletic Center (2,535) * High Point, NC
Broadcast: Wake Forest play-by-play announcer Tom Hart will call the action on WTRU-830 AM in Winston-Salem.
Records: WFU is 1-1 after dropping its home opener by two points to Western Michigan on Saturday night. High Point is 2-2 with wins over Loyola-Chicago and Navy, and two 3-point losses to Army and South Carolina State.
Series Meeting: This is the 15th meeting between the two teams, with High Point holding a 10-4 edge in the series. More series information can be found on page two.
The Coaches: Wake Forest head coach Charlene Curtis is in her fourth season with the Deacs, with a 20-65 record at the school. She has a 182-215 career record in her 15th season as a head coach. High Point head coach Joe Ellenburg is in his 13th season with the Panthers, with a 196-149 overall mark.
Up Next: The Deacons travel to Richmond, Va. for an 11:30 a.m. match with the Spiders on Thursday, Nov. 30.
Deacs Travel Down the Road to High Point for Monday Night Matchup...
The Demon Deacons, off to a 1-1 start in the young season, travel just down the road to High Point, NC, to take on the High Point Panthers Monday night.
After starting the season with an 83-60 win over Appalachian State on Nov. 19, the Deacs dropped a two-point heartbreaker to Western Michigan, 79-77, at home last Saturday.
The 2000-01 season marks the 30th anniversary of Wake Forest women's basketball. The Deacon program began in the 1971-72 season. WFU's first game was a 30-28 win over Elon College. Since then, Deacon women's basketball has compiled a 306-421 overall record.
A Quick Look at the Deacs...
Wake Forest returns a strong nucleus this season, with 10 letterwinners returning to action, including four starters. The team's top returning scorer a year ago, 6-0 senior Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick (8.9 ppg), was also the team's leading rebounder last season, pulling down 7.3 rebounds a contest. Kirkpatrick, the team's starter at power forward, leads a senior class which includes 6-1 forward Olivia Dardy and 5-10 guard Kristen Shaffer. Dardy spent much of last year on the injured list but was a key player for the Deacs two years ago, averaging 9.6 points and 6.8 rebounds a game. Shaffer, the starting shooting guard, started 20 games last year with a 7.2 scoring average.
The junior class is comprised of two point guards and a center. The Deacs' returning starter at point guard is 5-4 Val Klopfer, who averaged 3.7 points and 1.5 assists in 1999-2000. She is backed up by classmate Adell Harris, who earned playing time in all 28 games last season. Starting center LaChina Robinson, who stands 6-4, is a continuously improving inside player who averaged 7.7 points and blocked 19 shots a year ago.
Robinson will be challenged in the middle by sophomore Johanna Bj?rklund, Wake's tallest player ever at 6-5. Two other sophomores, 6-1 Tiffani Listenbee and 6-4 LaTisha Pearson, add depth as well as rebounding and shot-blocking abilities to the Deacs' post game. Rounding out the sophomore class is 5-10 forward Heather Miller, a versatile player who can contribute both on the inside and on the perimeter.
The Wake Forest freshman class will be called upon to make an early impact. Tracy Alston, a 5-10 forward and Tonia Brown, a 5-10 guard, are players who provide depth and versatility. Bianca Brown, at 5-8, gives the Deacs depth at the point guard spot, while 6-1 Eafton Hill, who has been impressive in the early goings of the season, has earned the starting nod at the small forward spot.
Head Coach Charlene Curtis...
Head coach Charlene Curtis (Radford `76) enters her fourth season at the helm of the Demon Deacon women's basketball team, bringing a wealth of experience, a commitment to excellence, and a contagious enthusiasm to the program. Before coming to Wake, Curtis was an assistant coach at national powerhouse Connecticut for two seasons, helping guide the Huskies to a 67-5 record, two BIG EAST titles and a Final Four appearance. Curtis was also head coach at Temple (1991-95), where she compiled a 41-97 record and coached four Atlantic-10 All-Rookie players and her alma mater, Radford, (1985-90), where she was Big South Coach of the Year twice and posted a 121-53 record. Curtis has also served as an assistant with Georgetown (1984), Virginia (1982-83) and USA Basketball, and was a floor coach for the Olympic Trials.
As a player at Radford, Curtis was the school's first 1,000-point scorer and was inducted as a charter member of RU's Hall of Fame in 1995. She earned a master's degree from UVa in 1982.
Curtis has compiled a 20-65 record at Wake Forest and is 182-215 overall.
The Series with High Point...
Wake Forest and High Point have met 14 previous times on the hardwood, with the Panthers owning a 10-4 lead in the series. Those figures are deceptive, however, as the first 13 meetings took place during WFU's first 10 years of women's basketball competition (1971-81). After an 18-year hiatus, the two teams renewed their series last season, with the Deacons taking a 74-43 victory in Winston-Salem. WFU's LaChina Robinson scored 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds in the victory.
Scouting the Panthers...
High Point is 2-2 so far this season, and will play at home for the first time this year against the Deacons on Monday night. Both Panther losses have only been by three points, as they dropped the season opener to Army, 75-72, and lost a 66-63 decision to South Carolina State last Saturday. Sandwiched between the losses are wins over Loyola-Chicago (70-63) and Navy (89-76). Like the Deacons, four players are averaging double-point figure scoring for High Point, led by junior forward Mary Brewer (13.8 ppg) and freshman guard Debbie Ruiz (13.0 ppg). Another freshman, 5-9 forward Nicki Fauntleroy, is averaging 12.8 points per game with a team-high 8.0 rebounds a contest. High Point has a very young roster, with 50 percent of the team (7-of-14) players listed as freshman.
High Point Homecoming for Harris...
Wake Forest junior point guard Adell Harris has the opportunity to play in front of a hometown crowd on Monday night, as she hails from High Point. A graduate of T. Wingate Andrews High School, Harris was the 1998 Guilford County Player of the Year, finishing her high school career with 1,746 points. Harris did not play in WFU's first two games of the season, but is expected to see action against the Panthers.
Second-Half Rally Falls Short Versus Hot-Shooting WMU...
The Wake Forest women's basketball team overcame a 14-point halftime deficit, but came up just short at the buzzer in its home opener, dropping a 77-79 decision to the Western Michigan Broncos in front of a crowd of 812 at Lawrence Joel Coliseum.
With the game tied at 10 early in the first half, the Broncos went on a 12-point run, sparked by the three-point shooting of guards Sarah Hurrle and Lisa Bruwer. The duo both finished the game with seven three pointers (Hurrle 7-of-11, Bruwer 7-of-13), tying with each other for a new Joel Coliseum record in a women's basketball game.
Down 33-47 at the break, the Demon Deacons chipped away at the Bronco lead in the second half. Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick provided a second-half offensive spark, hitting 3-of-3 from three-point range (she had just 10 career three-pointers entering the game). The Deacs were down by two with 22 seconds remaining when Hurrle missed the front end of a 1-and-1 free throw and Kirkpatrick grabbed the rebound. A shot by senior Olivia Dardy in the paint just missed the rim as the Broncos held on for a 79-77 victory.
Five Deacons finished with double-figure scoring, including Kirkpatrick with a team-high 16 points. She also had seven rebounds and dished a team-high six assists. Eafton Hill added 13 points, Dardy had 11, and Kristen Shaffer and LaChina Robinson each contributed 10. Tracy Alston pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.
The Injury Report...
One Deacon expected to make a big impact this season was senior shooting guard Janae Whiteside. After leading the team in scoring with 22 points, including four three-pointers, in the first exhibition game, Whiteside injured her right knee just four minutes into the second exhibition on Nov. 10. An MRI revealed ligament damage in addition to an already-diagnosed dislocated kneecap, which will keep her sidelined for the 2000-01 season. Whiteside underwent surgery on November 21 to repair the ligament damage and is rehabilitating as expected.
Sophomore forward Heather Miller missed both exhibition games and the season opener with early signs of a stress fracture in her right foot. She dressed but did not play against Western Michigan and is questionable for action at High Point.
Climbing the Career Charts...
Several current Demon Deacons are leaving their marks in the WFU record book - Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick is currently 19th all-time at Wake with 422 career rebounds ... Val Klopfer is currently tied for ninth with 50 career three-pointers, while her 153 three-point attempts also ranks ninth all-time ... LaChina Robinson owns sole possession of seventh place in career blocked shots with 42 ... Olivia Dardy is tied for eighth all-time with eight career double-doubles.
Rookie Enjoys Early Homecoming...
Freshman Eafton Hill made her collegiate debut in a familiar place - her hometown of Boone, NC. Hill earned the starting nod for the Deacs in their season opener at Appalachian State. The 6-1 forward has ties to ASU, as her sister attends school there while her mother works at the University. Hill had a large cheering section at the game, including her former Watauga High School teammates. She finished the game with nine points, three rebounds and an assist.
On the Air...
Deacon women's basketball will be on the radio at least 11 times during the season on WTRU 830 AM in Winston-Salem. Tom Hart returns this season to call all the action, with a variety of guest hosts to provide color commentary. The first scheduled broadcast is this Monday, Nov. 27, when the Deacs play at High Point. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 pm.
All games broadcast on the radio will also be broadcast on the internet at www.WakeForestSports.com.
Scheduling Notes...
All Deacon women's home games take place at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum, except Dec. 9 vs. Virginia, which takes place at Reynolds Gym on campus ... that contest is also WFU's ACC opener ... two home games are part of doubleheaders scheduled with Wake Forest men's basketball - Nov. 25 vs. Western Michigan and Dec. 2 versus Coppin State. Both games take place at 5:00 p.m. with the men's games following ... two home games will be shown on the ACC Regional Sports Network (FOX Sports South, Home Team Sports, Sunshine Network) - Sunday, Feb. 11 vs. Clemson and Monday, Feb. 19 vs. Maryland ... for the second straight year, the ACC Tournament takes place at the Greensboro (NC) Coliseum.
Looking Ahead...
The Deacons have another road trip later this week, as they travel to Richmond to take on the Richmond Spiders at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 30. Wake Forest then returns for a four-game homestand, beginning with Coppin State on Saturday, Dec. 2, followed by Liberty (Dec. 5), Virginia (Dec. 9) and New Orleans (Dec. 17).