The NCAA News - News and Features

March 30, 1998

Washington (Missouri) women keep cool in basketball

Washington (Missouri) held off a late rally by Southern Maine to win its first Division III women's basketball title March 21 at Southern Maine.

"The game is played within the lines and when Southern Maine made the run, we kept our composure," said Washington coach Nancy Fahey after her team's 77-69 win.

Washington led by 14 with 4:37 to go in the game when Southern Maine made its run. The Huskies cut the lead to three with 2:01 left, but that was the closest they could get as the Bears hit their free throws to finish out the game.

"We've been a second-half team all season. When we made a run, we got a lot of momentum, and just couldn't finish it off," said Southern Maine center Joanna Brown, who had 15 points for the Huskies. Southern Maine's high scorer was Tracy Libby, with 22 points.

Alia Fischer led the Bears with 28 points and 10 rebounds. "It was a whole-team game. Everyone scored and played team defense," Fischer said.

"We have total confidence in each other," said Washington's Amy Schweizer, who scored 16 points. "No one complains about playing time -- no one has more than 26 minutes a game. We are just happy for the people that are out on the floor."

Schweizer and Fischer were named to the all-tournament team, along with Suzy Venet of Mount Union and Brown and Julie Plant of Southern Maine.

The Bears finished the season 28-2 and the Huskies 29-3.

SEMIFINALS

Washington (Mo.) 66, Rowan 51

Washington (Mo.): Amy Schweizer 6-13, 0-1, 2, 16; Erica Stagen 0-3, 0-0, 4, 0; Angie Kohnen 2-7, 1-2, 3, 6; Emily Nolan 3-7, 0-0, 3, 6; Alia Fischer 10-17, 0-0, 11, 20; Emily Harold 2-3, 0-0, 8, 4; Tasha Rodgers 5-5, 0-0, 5, 10; Sue Tucker 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Rachel Brown 1-1, 0-0, 2, 2; Beth Ruether 1-2, 1-1, 0, 3; Lindsey Merrill 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0. TOTALS: 30-59, 2-5, 44, 66.

Rowan: Patty Walter 0-2, 0-0, 1, 0; Jenn Derby 4-20, 3-4, 11, 11; Suzanne Lynch 2-5, 0-0, 0, 4; Takiyah Bowen 7-25, 1-2, 10, 15; Jessica MacNeill 4-12, 2-2, 8, 10; Alexis Hobbs 3-5, 2-2, 1, 11; Shelby Lorenz 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Allison LaFazia 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0. TOTALS: 20-69, 8-10, 36, 51.

Half time: Washington (Mo.) 26, Rowan 24. Three-point field goals: Washington (Mo.) 4-11 (Schweizer 4-9, Stagen 0-1; Ruether 0-1); Rowan 3-6 (Derby 0-1, Lynch 0-1, Hobbs 3-4). Disqualifications: None. Officials: Michelle St. Pierre, Mark Braden. Attendance: 1,550.

Southern Me. 79, Mount Union 66

Mount Union: Katie Miller 2-3, 0-0, 1, 4; Suzy Venet 9-24, 1-3, 4, 22; Katie Harrington 5-10, 0-0, 5, 10; Danielle Jones 5-10, 1-2, 7, 13; Meggan Few 0-7, 0-0, 3, 0. Lacey Simmons 1-3, 0-0, 0, 3; Neily Stouffer 4-9, 1-3, 5, 10; Keri Canning 2-4, 0-0, 3, 4; Tracy Tabaczynski 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0. TOTALS: 28-71, 3-8, 30, 66.

Southern Me.: Julie Plant 5-10, 5-6, 7, 16; Mandy King 2-6, 2-2, 2, 7; Susan Ware 5-6, 0-0, 6, 10; Tracy Libby 6-16, 0-0, 11, 12; Joanna Brown 6-15, 6-8, 7, 18; Destiny Demo 5-6, 6-8, 5, 16; Danielle DeGraw 0-1, 0-0, 3, 0. TOTALS: 29-60, 19-24, 47, 79.

Half time: Southern Me. 39, Mount Union 31. Three-point field goals: Mount Union 7-27 (Venet 3-10, Jones 2-5, Few 0-5, Simmons 1-2, Stouffer 1-4, Canning 0-1); Southern Me. 2-7 (Plant 1-3, King 1-4). Disqualifications: None. Officials: Mary Beth Kirschling, Dan Outlaw. Attendance: 1,550.

CHAMPIONSHIP

Washington (Mo.) 77, Southern Me. 69

Washington (Mo.): Amy Schweizer 5-8, 2-3, 4, 14; Erica Stagen 3-6, 3-3, 3, 11; Angie Kohnen 5-10, 1-2, 7, 11; Emily Nolan 1-3, 0-2, 6, 2; Alia Fischer 10-19, 8-8, 10, 28; Emily Harold 0-2, 0-0, 1, 0; Tasha Rodgers 2-5, 4-7, 8, 8; Sue Tucker 0-1, 1-2, 0, 1; Rachel Brown 1-1, 0-0, 0, 2; Beth Ruether 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0. TOTALS: 27-56, 19-27, 40, 77.

Southern Me.: Julie Plant 3-9, 5-7, 3, 13; Mandy King 3-11, 1-1, 4, 8; Susan Ware 4-7, 0-1, 9, 8; Tracy Libby 9-15, 4-5, 6, 22; Joanna Brown 6-11, 3-5, 4, 15. Destiny Demo 1-4, 0-0, 1, 2; Danielle DeGraw 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Angela O'Connor 0-1, 1-2, 2, 1; Angel Elderkin 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0. TOTALS: 26-59, 14-21, 33, 69.

Half time: Washington (Mo.) 32, Southern Me. 28. Three-point field goals: Washington (Mo.) 4-8 (Schweizer 2-4, Stagen 2-3, Ruether 0-1); Southern Me. 3-12 (Plant 2-5, King 1-6, Brown 0-1). Disqualifications: Stagen, Fischer, Libby. Officials: Michelle St. Pierre, Dan Outlaw. Attendance: 1,550.