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Lady Crusaders Host William Jewell in HAAC Semi's
March 6, 2009
Contact: Evangel University Athletics 865-2815, Ext. 7282
Friday’s Game
Evangel hosts William Jewell in the Heart of America conference tournament semifinals. Evangel is the top seed in the conference and regular season champion. William Jewell is seeded fourth in the conference. The winner will advance to the HAAC Tournament Championship on Monday, March 9 against either (2) Benedictine or (3) Avila.
The Coaches
Leon Neal (Evangel ’89) is in his 16th season as head coach of the Lady Crusaders and brings a 326-169 career record into tonight’s game. Neal has led Evangel to two NAIA-II Final Fours (1996 and 2005).
Jill Cress (Northwestern College ‘93) is in her 13th season as head coach at William Jewell. She is 260-154 in her career at William Jewell. Cress guided her team to a conference title in 2007 and her team tied for the regular season championship in 2003.
Last Game
Evangel advanced past the quarterfinal round with a 62-57 win over Central Methodist Wednesday at the Ashcroft Center. Brianna Mingus poured in a season high 27 points hitting four three-pointers. Evangel led 31-27 and never trailed in the second half but the Eagles hung tough and pulled within three in the late going. Ashlee Luko had 13 and Tag Morris pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.
William Jewell advanced past MidAmerica Nazarene 75-70 at home on Wednesday. The Cardinals led 33-31 at the half and held off MidAmerica Nazarene down the stretch. Amber Parker led all scorers with 18 points and Erica Ferguson added 17 on 6 for 6 shooting from the floor. William Jewell owned a 37-26 rebound advantage in the game.
Season Series: Evangel 2-0
Jan. 22 Game: Evangel 61 William Jewell 35
Springfield, Mo. – The Lady Crusaders held William Jewell to 14 second half points in a 61-35 win in the first meeting between the two teams this season. Evangel outscored the Cardinals 37-14 in the second half. Ashlee Luko led all scorers with 22 points. Hillary Adams led William Jewell with 13.
Feb. 26 Game: Evangel 48 William Jewell 39
Liberty, Mo. – Evangel overcame scoring just 12 first half points to win at William Jewell 48-39 on Feb. 26. Evangel trailed 21-12 at halftime but outscored the Cardinls 36-18 in the second half. Evangel outscored William Jewell 28-7 in the final 11 minutes of regulation. Whitney Pollard, in her first game back from missing 10 days to torn knee ligaments, led all scorers with 14 points. Erica Ferguson and Faith Pontius had 10 points each for William Jewell.
Brianna-Rama
Junior guard Brianna Mingus is averaging 18.3 points per game in her last four games. She posted a season high 27 points in the first round of the tournament Wednesday against Central Methodist and had a 19-point game in the last regular season game against Avila on Saturday. Mingus was named the HAAC Player of the Week last week.
First Tournament Win Since 2005
Evangel won their first game in the conference tournament since 2005. They had lost three straight and have been eliminated in the opening round for three straight years until Wednesday night. The three straight losses came on the heels of 15 consecutive tournament wins that covered a span of five years.
Morris Logs Another Double-Figure Rebound Game
Tag Morris had her seventh straight double-figure rebounding game Wednesday when she pulled down 11 boards against Central Methodist. She is averaging 10.6 rebounds per game in the last 14 games. Morris finished the regular season leading the conference in rebounding. The senior from Blue Eye is averaging 8.2 rebounds per game. Morris also leads the conference in defensive rebounds at 5.7 per game and she ranks eighth in offensive rebounds with 2.5 per game. Morris can also be found in the top five in the conference in steals with 2.1 per game (4th) and she has posted six double-doubles this season, fourth most in the conference.
19-4 Since Dec. 1
Evangel enters the game Friday having won 19 of their last 23 games. They have gone 19-4 since Dec. 1 and have not lost back-to-back since Nov. 28-29.
Mingus Milestones
Brianna Mingus enters today’s game just three points shy of 1,000 points in her career. The junior has scored 997 career points and could become only 19th player in Evangel history to pass the milestone. Stephanie Lansdown (2002-06) was the last Evangel player to enter the 1,000 point club.
Mingus also ranks fifth all-time in 3-pointers made with 158.
Series vs. William Jewell
Evangel leads the all-time series against William Jewell 42-27. Wednesday’s game is the 70th meeting between the two teams all-time. Evangel is 20-11 at home against the Cardinals in their history.
| Rank | Team | Conference Wins |
Conference Loses |
Total Wins |
Total Loses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evangel-z | 17 | 3 | 20 | 9 |
| 2 | Bendctn-y | 16 | 4 | 21 | 9 |
| 3 | Avila-x | 15 | 5 | 23 | 6 |
| Will. Jwl-x | 15 | 5 | 21 | 9 | |
| 5 | MidAm Naz-x | 14 | 6 | 20 | 10 |
| 6 | Baker-x | 9 | 11 | 15 | 15 |
| Lindnwd-x | 9 | 11 | 14 | 15 | |
| 8 | C. Mthdst-x | 7 | 13 | 10 | 19 |
| 9 | Graceland | 3 | 17 | 5 | 20 |
| Mo. Valley | 3 | 17 | 4 | 27 | |
| 11 | Culver-St. | 2 | 18 | 5 | 22 |
z- clinched conference regular season championship
y-clinched second place in conf.
x- clinched conference tournament berth
Quarterfinals Scores
(1) Evangel 62 (8) Cen. Methodist 57
(4) Will. Jewell 75 (5) MidAm Naz 70
(2) Benedictine 92 (7) Lindenwood 59
(3) Avila 65 (6) Baker 62
Semifinal Schedule
(4) William Jewell at (1) Evangel
(3) Avila at (2) Benedictine
(all games 7 p.m. starts)
Evangel HAAC Tournament History
Evangel has an all-time record of 28-8 in the conference postseason tournament and has captured seven championships. The Lady Crusaders won five straight tournament titles from 2001-2005 winning 15 straight conference post-season games.
| Year | Seed | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 5th | 0-1: L 1st rd |
| 2007 | 7th | 0-1: L 1st rd |
| 2006 | 4th | 0-1: L 1st rd |
| 2005 | 1st | 3-0: champs |
| 2004 | 1st | 3-0: champs |
| 2003 | 2nd | 3-0: champs |
| 2002 | 1st | 3-0: champs |
| 2001 | 1st | 3-0: champs |
| 2000 | 5th | 1-1: L semis |
| 1999 | 5th | 0-1: L 1st rd |
| 1998 | 3rd | 2-1: L finals |
| 1997 | 3rd | 2-1: L finals |
| 1996 | 1st | 3-0: champs* |
| 1995 | 3rd | 1-1: L semis |
| 1994 | 2nd | 3-0: champs |
*completed undefeated regular season and postseason (19-0)
Evangel Completes Seventh Regular Season Championship
Evangel has won their seventh regular season championship Saturday with the victory over Avila. Evangel has won the conference outright six times and has been co-champion once. The title is the Lady Crusaders first since 2004-05
Jackson Bound
Evangel’s regular season HAAC Championship means they have clinched a berth in the NAIA-I National Championship Tournament in Jackson, Tennessee. The Lady Crusaders have appeared in eight NAIA national tournaments, all at NAIA-II. Evangel has advanced to two Final Fours in 1996 and 2005, advanced to the Quarterfinals twice and the round of 16 twice.
This year’s NAIA-I National Tournament bracket will be announced Wednesday, March 11. The tournament is March 18-24.
Coming Up
Should the Lady Crusaders win Friday, they will host the conference championship game against the winner of the Avila at Benedictine game Monday at 7 p.m.
Follow the Crusaders On ESPN 1400 AM and www.allinbroadcasting.com