Tigers positioned for their fifth win against first time foe Augustana

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

The eighth-ranked and defending National champion DePauw women's basketball team will battle the Vikings of Augustana College tonight at the Lilly Center.

The Tigers boast a 4-1 record, including a 1-0 record in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. Powering the offense are a quad of double figure scorers, who are pouring in 48 points per contest for DPU.

Leading the charge is junior guard Cassie Pruzin with 15 points per game. She also has collected 13 assists and is second on the team in rebounds with five per game. She also is shooting a sizzling 48 percent from three-point territory. Jenna Fernandez leads the team in rebounds with six per contest, including 16 offensive boards and is second on the team in scoring with 12 point again.

Gretchen Haehl and Kalei Lowes round out the DePauw scoring barrage with a combined 22 points a game. Haehl also leads the team with 24 assists.

"It's good to have that kind of balance scoring," DPU head coach Kris Huffman commented. "Where you, on any given day, have option to go to. We definitely want that balance, that inside outside scoring threat. I thought that against Centre that we established some of that inside scoring.

This marks the first showdown between the Tigers and Vikings. Huffman and the Tigers have used tape of the Vikings first few games to get a feel for what they might face.

"We're Just trying to figure out a new opponent and hopefully be able to take away some of their strengths. They're athletic in the post so we'll have to be ready for them," Huffman said.

The Vikings are 2-2 on the season and will have to compete with a much taller DPU squad. The tallest player for Augustana is Jeanelle Strohmaier at 5-feet-11-inches. DPU brings six players at six-foot or taller to the court and averages 183 boards a game compared to the Vikings' 177. Size is a factor Huffman hopes will favor the Tigers.

"WE hope that it will on the offensive end, where we can get some touches in the paint," Huffman said. "But defenivly is where I'm concerned right now because they are going to try to use they guard quality in the front court and challenge us in transition."

Sarah Miers and Becky Rehn pace Augustana with a combined 25 points a game. Miers and Rehn also team up for 10 rebounds a game.

Maegan Skahill is a force down low for the Vikings, averaging eight boards a game, including 17 offensive, while putting in seven points per contest.

The game will be carried live Wednesday on 91.5 fm WGRE starting at 7 p.m.

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