Washington and Lee University
WHERE THEY STAND: After snapping a five-game losing streak last week with a 64-53 win over Guilford, the Generals currently hold down the eighth spot in the ODAC. However, in order to keep this position, this week’s games are key as the Blue and White face Emory & Henry (10th), Randolph (9th), and Roanoke (5th).
KING OF THE GENERALS: Mandy King (Southern Maine ’98) is in her fifth season as head women’s basketball coach at W&L and has a career record of 54-67 (.446). King is assisted by Kristen McCandless (TCNJ ’03), who is in her third season.
W&L VS. EMORY & HENRY: This is the 28th meeting between the Generals and the Wasps. E&H holds a 17-10 advantage in the all-time series, but W&L won both meetings (62-44 in Emory, Va.; 82-67 in Lexington, Va.) last season.
SCOUTING THE WASPS: Emory & Henry upset 19th-ranked and ODAC leader Randolph-Macon on Saturday, 76-68, to improve to 6-12 overall and 4-9 in conference play. With the score tied at 21-21 with 7:50 left in the first half, the Wasps closed out the first stanza on an 18-6 run to take a 39-27 lead at the break. R-MC fought back, taking the lead several times in the waning minutes of the contest, but E&H hit eight free throws down the stretch to take the game. Sophomore guard Sarah Petty led the Wasps with 25 points, seven assists and five steals in the win. Petty also leads E&H this season, averaging 11.6 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
LAST MEETING WITH E&H (2/16/07): W&L won it’s 14th game of the season and forward Kristen Krouchick tallied 14 points en route to becoming the seventh General in program history to record 1,000 career points as the Blue and White trumped E&H, 82-67, at the Warner Center. W&L jumped out to a 12-point lead (20-8) with 13:13 remaining in the first half and maintained a 42-27 advantage at the break. The Wasps got as close as 11 points on two occasions in the second half, but could not get any closer down the stretch. Washington and Lee shot a season-high 50.0 percent from the floor (32-64), including hitting 8-of-16 (.500) from beyond the arc. Forward Amanda Kane paced five Generals in double-digits with a career-high 17 points and six rebounds. Guard Emily Wolff also established a new career-high with 16 points and tied her career-high with seven assists. Krouchick and senior center Jessica Hunsinger both added 14 points. Krouchick also dished out a career-high nine assists and grabbed seven boards, while senior guard Sarah Otey rounded out the double-figure scorers with a season-high 12 points. Emory & Henry was led by forward Alex Lyons’ 18 points and 11 rebounds. Guard Sarah Petty totaled 14 points, while guard Baylie Snyder registered 11 points.
LAST TIME OUT: Washington and Lee ended a five-game losing skid with a 64-53 win over Guilford on Jan. 29. W&L held the Quakers to just 15.6 percent shooting in the first half and jumped out to an early 19-3 lead en route to the 11-point win. The Generals out-rebounded GC, 55-43, and forced 17 Quaker turnovers. Senior forward Kristen Krouchick paced four Generals in double-figures with 14 points and nine rebounds. Senior forward Amanda Kane tallied 11 points and a game-high five assists, while senior guard Emily Wolff and junior forward Kara Nadeau each had 10 markers. Nadeau also added nine rebounds. Sophomore center Kaitlyn Kamp totaled a team-high 10 rebounds, to go along with five points.
W&L vs. RANDOLPH: These teams will meet for the 30th time on Friday. The Generals own a 20-9 advantage in the all-time series and have won three of the last four meetings with the WildCats. However, RC defeated W&L earlier this season (70-50) -- just its second-ever win in Lexington, Va.
SCOUTING RANDOLPH: After starting the season with just one win in its first 11 contests, Randolph (5-12, 3-10) has rebounded to win four of its last six games. The WildCats travel to Virginia Wesleyan on Tuesday before hosting the Generals on Friday. On the season, sophomore guard Katie Rechnitzer leads RC with 15.5 points per game, while freshman forward Michelle Brockman is adding 11.3 points and a team-high 9.4 rebounds per contest. Sophomore forward Lindsay Cross is also averaging double-digits in points (11.5 ppg) and is posting 8.5 rebounds per game.
LAST MEETING WITH THE WILDCATS (1/19/08): Freshman forward Michelle Brockman tallied a game-high 22 points and 13 rebounds to lead Randolph to a 70-50 win over W&L. The Generals led by as many as 14 points (24-10) in the first half, but the WildCats used a 16-4 spurt over the final 7:01 of the first period to cut the W&L lead to two points, 28-26, at the break. The contest was tied five times in the opening minutes of the second half until a Brockman lay-up gave Randolph the lead for good (47-46) with 9:03 remaining. The WildCats then closed out the contest with a 23-3 run to secure the victory. Randolph shot 48.3 percent (14-29) from the floor in the second stanza and 42.9 percent (24-56) in the game, compared to W&L’s 28.6 percent (18-63) performance. W&L was led by senior forward Kristen Krouchick’s 13 points and nine rebounds. Senior guard Emily Wolff dropped in 11 markers, while senior forward Amanda Kane added 10 points. Brockman’s 22-point outing was supplemented by sophomore guard Katie Rechnitzer, who had 20 points. Sophomore forward Lindsay Cross totaled 18 points and 10 rebounds.
W&L vs. ROANOKE: This is the 28th meeting all-time meeting between the Maroons and the Generals. Roanoke currently owns a 24-3 advantage in the all-time series, but W&L has won three of the last four encounters, including a 61-57 come-from-behind win earlier this season.
SCOUTING ROANOKE: The Maroons improved to 10-8 overall and 8-5 in the ODAC with a 68-28 win over Hollins last week. RC plays Hollins again on Friday, before coming to Lexington on Saturday. Despite playing in only 12 of the Maroons’ 18 games, senior forward Erin Hanson continues to be RC’s leading scorer and rebounder, totaling in 13.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. Sophomore forward Caitlyn Long adds 11.8 points and 6.0 per game, while freshman forward Jordan Gholson is averaging 9.5 ppg and 6.0 rpg.
LAST MEETING WITH THE MAROONS (1/11/08) : Junior guard Bethany Ridenhour drilled a pair of three-pointers in the final 1:26 of the game to finish off a second-half comeback and lead the Generals to a 61-57 win over Roanoke at the Bast Center. The Generals trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half and 14 points in the second stanza and did not lead in the contest until Ridenhour drained her second three-pointer in row to give W&L a 59-57 lead with 47 seconds remaining. Roanoke held a 30-18 lead at the break and led by 13 points (55-42) with 6:30 remaining in the contest. However, the Generals held the Maroons to just one field goal and outscored RC, 19-2, the rest of the way to pull out the comeback win. Freshman guard Allie Long also helped key the comeback with nine points during the game-ending run that was capped off by a pair of free throws by senior forward Amanda Kane with 13 seconds remaining. Long led W&L with 13 points and four assists, while senior forward Kristen Krouchick tallied 11 points and six rebounds. Kane dropped in eight points and collected eight boards.
THE COMEBACK KIDS: The Generals have posted two exciting come-from-behind wins thus far this season. In a 61-57 win over Roanoke, the Blue and White rallied from a 14-point second-half deficit to post a four-point victory. The win was the largest second-half comeback for the Generals since a similar 14-point deficit against Guilford during the 1998-99 campaign. In that contest, W&L trailed the Quakers 42-28 at halftime, were down by double-figures until 5:49 was left and did not tie the contest until 1:32 remained. The Generals also posted a second thrilling come-from-behind win this season as they used a 22-5 run to erase a 13-point second-half Bridgewater lead and emerge with a 54-47 win over the Eagles on Jan. 5.
EDITING THE RECORD BOOKS: Senior Kristen Krouchick has made quite an impact on the all-time records at W&L. She recently moved into the fifth all-time scoring spot, owning 1,228 career points. She needs 52 points to overtake Megan Babst ‘02 (1,265) and move into the fourth spot. Krouchick’s career shooting percentage (.448, 507-1132) also ranks third all-time at W&L.
“HURRIKANE” AMANDA: An athletic and physical player, senior forward Amanda Kane can be a devastating player on both ends of the floor. In a 50-49 loss to Bridgewater, Kane tallied her first career double-double with 14 points and a career-high 12 rebounds. So far this season, Kane is posting a second-best 9.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg and 2.5 apg. She has scored in double-figures in 10 games and has tallied 10 or more in four-straight contests. For her career, Kane owns 548 points and 383 rebounds.
CASTING A LONG SHADOW: Though just a freshman, guard Allie Long has already made a significant impact on the season. Long was an integral part of the Generals’ comeback at Roanoke, scoring nine of her career-high 13 points during the game-deciding 19-2 run. She is second on the squad with 2.4 assists per contests and is shooting a team-best 70.6 percent from the foul line (12-17).
LET’S GO FOR A RIDE: Junior guard Bethany Ridenhour provides the Generals with a spark off the bench and has come into games to score double-figures on five occasions. She tallied 10 points in a 68-57 loss to then No. 20 Randolph-Macon. She also racked up a season-high 19 points in a 71-62 loss to Eastern Mennonite (1/15), hitting 8-of-13 of her shots from the floor, including 3-of-5 from downtown. Additionally, she has totaled a career-high nine rebounds on two occasions (at R-MC, BC) and is averaging 7.0 rpg over the last four games. For the season, Ridenhour is averaging a third-best 8.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, a team-best 2.2 steals and 1.9 assists per contest.
TAKING CENTER STAGE: Sophomore center Kaitlyn Kamp showed that she’s ready for the limelight during her second season. She has posted double-figures in scoring four times and double-digits rebounds twice this season. She tallied her second career double-double (10 pts/12 rbs) in a 52-38 loss to Virginia Wesleyan on Jan. 8. Kamp tied her career high with 15 points in a 62-59 win over Mary Baldwin on Nov. 28. She also played an pivotal role in the Generals’ come-from-behind 54-47 win over Bridgewater on Jan. 5 with 13 points along and eight rebounds. This season, Kamp is averaging 51 points and 4.7 rebounds per game and she is shooting a second-best 51.4 percent (38-74) from the floor.
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