EVANSVILLE, Ind.—University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball opens to the 2022 NCAA Division II Midwest Region Tournament Friday at 6:30 p.m. (CST) when it squares off against No. 15/18 Walsh University at Kates Gymnasium in Ashland, Ohio.
The No. 25 Screaming Eagles (23-5) enter the weekend as the No. 5 seed in the eight-team regional, while Walsh is the No. 4 seed.
Top-seeded Ashland University will host this year’s regional and will play No. 8-seeded Ferris State University in the opening round Friday at 4 p.m.
Other quarterfinal matchups include the 11 a.m. matchup between the No. 3 seed, Drury University, taking on the No. 6 seed, the University of Missouri-St. Louis; and the 1:30 p.m. matchup, which features the No. 2 seed, Grand Valley State University, taking on the No. 7 seed, Wayne State University.
Friday’s game marks the first-ever meeting between USI and Walsh, which was the runner up in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. Ashland was the GMAC Tournament champions, while Ferris State earned the automatic qualifier from the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference after upsetting Grand Valley State in the championship.
Drury won the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament title, while USI was the top-seed in the GLVC Tournament and is looking to rebound from a semifinal loss to Lewis University.
This year’s tournament marks the 12th time USI has been selected to compete in the NCAA II Tournament and the first time since 2020, when the regional was canceled due to COVID. USI last competed in the regional in 2018.
USI Women’s Basketball Notes
• Eagles snare at-large bid to NCAA II Tournament. USI Women’s Basketball earned an at-large bid into the NCAA II Midwest Region Tournament, marking the 12th time USI has been selected for NCAA post-season play and the first time since 2020. This year will mark the 11th appearance for the Eagles in the NCAA II Tournament and first since 2018 after the 2020 NCAA II Tournament was canceled due to COVID.
• USI goes 1-1 at GLVC Tournament. The Eagles went 1-1 at last week’s GLVC Tournament. USI, which was the top seed, opened the tournament with a dominating 92-59 win over Southwest Baptist, but fell to a red-hot Lewis squad, 88-72, in the semifinals.
• GLVC Tournament leaders. Junior forward Hannah Haithcock and sophomore forward Meredith Raley led the Eagles in the scoring column last week with 11.5 and 10.5 points per game, respectively. The Eagles had eight different players average at least 7.0 points per outing, with junior guard Addy Blackwelland senior forward Ashlynn Brown each contributing 9.5 point per appearance.
Brown and Raley each led USI with 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game, while freshman guard Vanessa Shafford and junior guard Tori Handley each finished with a team-high 3.5 assists per contest. Handley had a team-leading 2.0 steals per appearance.
• Season leaders. Haithcock and Raley lead the Eagles with 12.4 and 12.0 points per game, respectively, while Raley leads USI with 5.2 rebounds and 0.6 blocks per contest. Blackwell is averaging 9.4 points, 2.0 assists and a team-high tying 1.6 steals per appearance, while Handley is tied for the team-lead with 1.6 steals per outing. Fifth-year senior guard Emma DeHart chips in 9.6 points, 1.5 steals and a team-high 2.1 assists per game.
• Eagles back in Top 25. USI returned to the Top 25 heading into the NCAA II Tournament as the Eagles are ranked No. 25 in the latest D2SIDA Division II Media Poll. The Eagles are still receiving votes outside the WBCA Top 25 Division II Coaches’ Poll.
• USI looking for first NCAA II Tourney win since 2002. The Eagles are looking for their first NCAA II Tournament win since 2002. USI has lost its previous five games in the “Big Dance”, including a 72-64 setback to Lewis in its most recent appearance in 2018.
• NCAA Tournament experience. USI has six players on the roster that made the trip to the 2020 NCAA II Tournament, but only one player that has played in an NCAA II Tournament game. Blackwell, Brown, DeHart, Haithcock, junior forward Tara Robbe and junior guard/forward Lexi Thompson all had their previous experience in the “Big Dance” cut short following their on-site practice in 2020 due to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID cost USI a chance at a return trip in 2021 as well. Due to those circumstances, DeHart is the only player on USI’s roster who has played in an NCAA II Tournament game as she scored a point in two minutes as a freshman during USI’s NCAA II Tournament loss to Lewis in 2018.
• Eagles against the field. USI is 2-1 against this year’s NCAA II Midwest Region Tournament field and is 69-54 all-time. The Eagles had four players average in double-figures in those three games, with Brown leading the team with 12.0 points and 1.0 blocks per contest. Raley chipped in 11.0 points and a team-best 5.7 rebounds per game, while DeHart averaged 11.7 points and a team-high 3.0 steals per outing.
• Something new. USI’s game against Walsh marks the first time USI has played an NCAA II Tournament game against an opponent it did not see during the regular-season since it faced Lake Superior State in 2004.
• Eagles net post-season honors. Seven USI Women’s Basketball players were honored Wednesday with post-season awards. Blackwell, Haithcock and Raley all earned second-team All-GLVC honors, while Brown and DeHart earned third-team All-GLVC accolades. Shafford was named to the GLVC’s All-Freshman team, while fifth-year senior guard Ashley Hunter was the Eagles’ nominee for the James R. Spalding GLVC Sportsmanship Award.
• Eagles win GLVC East Division. USI clinched its fourth straight GLVC East Division title with its wire-to-wire 70-55 win over Maryville.
• Haithcock nets GLVC weekly honor. After matching a career-high 22 points in back-to-back games and averaging 18.7 points on the week, Haithcock was named GLVC Player of the Week for her efforts in USI’s wins over Lindenwood, Rockhurst and William Jewell. She is the first USI Women’s Basketball player to net GLVC Player of the Week honors since Kaydie Grooms collected the award February 19, 2018.
• Double-double. USI has had four players record double-doubles this season. Haithcock has had two double-doubles, while Blackwell, Brown and Raley have each posted one-double-double this season.
• Double-figures. USI has had 10 different players reach double-figures in the scoring column this season, including nine players that have scored 10-or-more points in multiple games.
• 20-point outings. USI has had four different players reach the 20-point plateau this season. DeHart and Haithcock have each reached the 20-point plateau twice this season, while Blackwell and Hunter also scored 20-or-more points this season.
• Stein snares 400th win. USI Head Coach Rick Stein earned his 400th career victory with the Eagles 88-80 victory over Illinois Springfield. He’s been on the sidelines for 570 of USI’s 718 all-time wins during his 31 seasons on the bench, 23 of which have been leading the program after eight seasons as an assistant.
• Gatling 500. USI Assistant Coach Randa Gatling also hit a milestone. Gatling, who has been on the bench for all of Stein’s wins, picked up her 500th career win, including her 100 wins as a player at USI, when Stein won his 400th game.
