WBB Preview: The Storm head off to Florida before the new year starts
The Simpson Storm women's basketball team travels to Florida for the Daytona Beach Shootout on Dec. 20 and 21 to finish the year off. The Storm play Lebanon Valley on Dec. 20 at 10 a.m. EST and Carthage on Dec. 21 at 12 p.m. EST at Bethune - Cookman Moore Gym.
The Storm (7-3) looks ahead to Florida after a 72-64 win against the Wis.-Eau Claire Blugolds on Friday, Dec. 15. The Lebanon Valley Dutchmen (7-4) are heading to Florida after a 70-59 loss at No. 22 University of Scranton on Monday, Dec. 18 while the Carthage Lady Reds (6-3) triumphed over Knox, winning 77-36 on Saturday, Dec. 16 at Kenosha, Wis.
THIS WEEK
Lebanon Valley (7-4) vs Simpson (7-3)
Wednesday, Dec. 20 — 10 a.m. EST
Bethune - Cookman Moore Gym — Daytona, Fla.
Live Video | Live Stats
Carthage (6-3) vs Simpson (7-3)
Thursday, Dec. 21 — 12 p.m. EST
Bethune - Cookman Moore Gym — Daytona, Fla.
Live Video | Live Stats
STARTING FIVE
1 -- The Storm held onto an eight-point victory against the Blugolds on Friday after a 24-point lead at the half. The 72-64 win handed the Blugolds their second straight loss of the season and kept center Anna Grasskamp, WIAC's leading scorer, to four points after averaging more than 17 ppg. Noreen Morrow lead the Storm with 16 points and nine rebounds.
2 -- Simpson is among the nation's best in field goal percentage. The Storm's 47.1 shooting percentage currently ranks seventh in Division III. Individually, Noreen Morrow is 12th in the country (60.5) and Janey Botkins is 20th in 3-point percentage (48.0).
3 -- Simpson shot 50 percent against the Blugolds making it the fourth straight game with 50 percent or higher field goal percentage. This marks the fifth game of the season with 50 percent-or-better shooting.
4 -- Simpson's three losses in 2017-18 have come by a combined eight points. The Storm dropped the season-opener to Wis.-Stevens Point 69-66, fell to Saint Benedict 66-63 and lost to Dubuque 88-86.
5 -- Noreen Morrow inches her way toward 1,000 point career milestone. After Friday's 16-point game, she reached 882 career points and averages 13.7 ppg this season.
SERIES NOTES
Lebanon Valley — Simpson and Lebanon Valley are meeting for the second time in a series that began in the 2015-16 season. Simpson won the near-defeated game by one point, 54-53, at the Puerto Rico College Tours Tournament in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Dec. 29, 2016.
Date [Location] — Result
12/29/2016 [San Juan, Puerto Rico] — W, 54-53
Carthage — Simpson and Carthage are meeting for the second time in a series that began in the 2008-09 season. Simpson leads the series 1-0 with a close 84-82 victory in overtime on Nov. 21, 2008 at the NWU Tip-Off Classic.
Date [Location] — Result
11/21/2008 [Lincoln] — W, 84-82 OT
SCOUTING OUT THE OPPONENT
Lebanon Valley — The Dutchmen have three regular starters averaging more than 10 ppg- Becky Evans with 11.4, Caroline Scarff with 11.0 and Emily Mealy with 10.9. Evans tops the team in steals (34) and Mealy leads the team in blocks (7) and field goal percentage (.511). As a team, the Dutchmen have a .376 field goal percentage but win with 61.6 ppg, beating out four teams with 62 points or less.
Carthage — Sophomore Madie Kaelber leads the Lady Reds with 22.2 ppg and a .897 free throw average. The 5-7 guard steered the team a win against Knox with 18 points with 15 in the first half. Senior guard Morgan Harris leads the team in rebounds per game (10.3), second in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin. Harris topped the Reds with 11 rebounds against Knox. As a team, Carthage leads in rebounds per game (41.2) and is in the top-four contenders in offensive scoring and free throw, field goal and 3-pt percentage in the conference.
