Women's Basketball Kicks Off 2009-10 Campaign with AC Tip-Off Tournament

Nov. 19, 2009

ADRIAN, Mich. - The women's basketball team is hosting the AC Tip-Off Tournament beginning tomorrow and running through Saturday at the Merillat Sport and Fitness Center Gymnasium. The 2009-10 season begins on Friday at 6:00 p.m. for the Bulldogs as they play Waynesburg (Pa.) University. The nightcap will feature Defiance College and Otterbein College for a scheduled 8:00 p.m. tip. The Saturday rundown features the consolation game at 1:00 p.m. followed by the championship game.

Here is a capsule of the four teams competing in this year's tournament:

ADRIAN COLLEGE (14-11 in 2008-09)
Head Coach Kathy Morris (18th season)
The Bulldogs have a strong senior quartet that have been together for the last three seasons. Anita Stamps (River Rouge, Mich./Inter-City Baptist) is the team's leading scorer from last season averaging 13.5 points per game. Stamps shot 42.1 percent from the floor and also averaged 3.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 3.1 steals per game.

Jennifer Perrin (Richland, Mich./Gull Lake) is the team's floor leader and averaged 11.7 points per game in 2008-09. She ranked seventh in the MIAA in scoring a year ago. Perrin ranked second on the team with 69 assists. She also was a solid free throw shooter making 77.5 percent (69-of-89) at the stripe. The Bulldogs shot 40.2 percent as a team last year and averaged 65.2 points per contest.

DEFIANCE COLLEGE (9-16 in 2008-09)
Head Coach Dic Doumanian (3rd season)
The Yellow Jackets are the only team in the tournament with a game under their belt after a 74-64 win against Olivet on Tuesday. Courtney Schmersal (Ottawa, Ohio/Pandora-Gilboa) scored a team-high 16 points on a perfect shooting night going 6-of-6 from the field including 4-of-4 from behind the arc. Mandie White (Ottawa, Ohio/Ottawa-Glandorf) added 14 points, seven rebounds and a pair of blocks. The Yellow Jackets shot 46.4 percent overall and were 9-of-19 (47.4%) from behind the arc.

White, Shavonda Price (Fort Wayne, Ind./South Side) and Tasha Stucke (Coldwater, Ohio/Coldwater) were all selected as Players-to-Watch in the Heartland Conference Preseason Poll. White is the lone senior on the team, and will be crucial to the Yellow Jackets' success this season. She is a two-time All-HCAC selection and the Yellow Jackets' most talented post player. White averaged eight points a game last season while posting a team-high .436 field goal percentage.

OTTERBEIN COLLEGE (12-14 in 2008-09)
Head Coach Connie Richardson (19th season)
The Cardinals return three starters to the lineup this season and eight letter-winners from a year ago. Karli Volkmer (Galion, Ohio/Colonel Crawford) is a senior guard who tallied 10.2 points per game a year ago and earned a spot on the Academic All-OAC honorable mention team. She was second on the team in steals and grabbed four rebounds per contest.

Senior Katy Miller (Delaware, Ohio/Rutherford B. Hayes) was a 2008 All-OAC Honorable Mention selection. She finished fourth in the league in rebounding (7.5 rpg) and was the Cardinals' second-leading scorer at 10.3 points per game. She led the Cardinals in minutes played (30.1/game) and blocked shots (21). In addition, she shot .436 (112 of 257) from the field.

WAYNESBURG UNIVERSITY (8-18 in 2008-09)
Head Coach Sam Jones (2nd season)
The Yellow Jackets are a member of the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) and had a seven-win improvement from 2007-08 last season which was the 12th-best turnaround in Division III. The Yellow Jackets return four starters from last year's team, including All-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) honorees Elisha Jones (Russell, Pa./Eisenhower) and Callie White (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Catholic).

Jones, a junior forward, led the team in scoring last year and finished the regular season ranked fifth in the PAC in scoring (14.6 points per game). She also ranked 10th in the conference in shooting percentage, was second in blocks per game (1.88) and played the fifth most minutes per game in the conference (33.77).

White, a sophomore forward, burst onto the scene for the Jackets and made an immediate impact, especially on the offensive side of the ball. As a freshman, the Pittsburgh native averaged 12.8 points per game, which was good for 10th in the PAC. White also proved effective at the free throw line, converting just over 79 percent of her shots, which was good for tops on the team and fourth in the conference.