Loss in Hawaii against nationally-ranked NAIA squad drops Lyons to 4-4

December 19, 2007

HONOLULU, HI- In the Wheaton College women's basketball team's first game played outside the continental United States, the Lyons fell to nationally-ranked South Dakota Tech, 74-46 on Wednesday in the first day of the Hoop N Surf Tournament at Kilauea District Park.

The Lyons are now 4-4, while the Lady Hardrockers, who are tied for 18th in the latest NAIA Division II national poll, improved to 10-3. Wheaton held South Dakota Tech to fewer than 75 points for just the fourth time this season.

Wheaton never led in the game, but the Lyons trailed just 9-6 a little more than two minutes into the contest following sophomore Andrea Bailey's (Needham, MA/Needham) bucket before the Lady Hardrockers embarked on a 17-4 run to grab a 26-10 lead by 6:54.

South Dakota Tech held a 19-point edge three times late in the opening half and headed into the intermission up 38-19 after shooting 51.9 percent. Twelve different Lyons saw action in the stanza, as Wheaton connected on 23.3 percent of its tries from the field.

The Lady Hardrockers capped a 12-0 run that began in the opening period at 18:22 of the second half to make it 48-19 before Wheaton junior Krystin Hickey (Manchester, NH/New Hampton School) scored the next five points. From there, South Dakota Tech never led by more than 30 points or fewer than 24 down the stretch.

Wheaton improved its shooting to 34.6 percent in the second half, bumping its percentage for the game to 28.6, while its opponent shot 40.0 percent in the final stanza and 44.8 for the game. The Lyons forced 26 turnovers but committed 30 of their own.

Hickey notched a game-high-tying 12 points and a team-best three assists while snagging five rebounds, and sophomore Jenny Champney (Bedford, MA/Bedford) had 10 points, a game-high-tying seven rebounds and two blocked shots. Bailey added seven points on 3-of-5 shooting, while sophomore Ida Kruse (Vershire, VT/Rivendell Academy) snagged six boards and swatted two shots in time off the bench.

Sophomore Bethany Holyoak (Moorcroft, WY) led a balanced scoring effort for South Dakota Tech with 12 points while turning in seven boards, and senior Melanie Vedvei (Lake Preston, ND) had 10 points. Senior Jennie Malone (Rapid City, SD) added nine points and five assists, while freshman Stephany Bjustrom (Algona, IA) notched nine points and four helpers.

The Blue and White finishes its competition in Hawaii tomorrow against Briar Cliff University, an Iowa-based college, at 10:00 a.m.

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