KUTZTOWN, PA (March 3, 2010) – The Kutztown University men's and women's basketball teams advanced to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) semifinals after earning a pair of dramatic victories in Tuesday's quarterfinals. Kutztown is the only PSAC school with both of its basketball teams still playing.
Both of Kutztown's semifinal contests will be a rematch of a pair of games played earlier this season at Kutztown. After defeating Mansfield, 65-61, the Golden Bears (22-6) will meet Clarion University (18-10) in a semifinal contest at East Stroudsburg's Koehler Fieldhouse on Friday March 5, 2010 at 5:30 p.m. The other men's semifinal matches eighth-ranked Indiana, Pa. (26-2) against East Stroudsburg (24-4).
On the women's side, Kutztown (19-9) defeated Bloomsburg, 74-67, in overtime to earn a date against No. 1 ranked Gannon (31-0) at the Hammermill Center, also on Friday night. That contest begins at 7:30 p.m. Gannon is the only undefeated team in Division II and it has the second longest women's basketball winning streak at any NCAA level behind the University of Connecticut's 69-game winning streak. The other women's semifinal matches West Chester (19-9) against California (22-6).
The semifinal winners will meet Saturday night for the PSAC championship and the automatic bid into the NCAA Division II tournament.
Wherever your destination takes you, ticket prices for this weekend's PSAC championship are $14 for a two-day pass for adults ($8 for Saturday only) and $5 for children under 12 ($3 for Saturday only). Students from member PSAC institutions will be admitted for free with a valid ID.
The men defeated Clarion, 94-62, on Jan. 3 and the women fell to Gannon, 86-68, on Jan. 2. This is the second consecutive trip to the PSAC semifinals for the Kutztown men. The Golden Bears defeated Slippery Rock in the semifinals last year and lost to Gannon in the championship game.
Julius Gray (Lincoln University, PA/Oxford Area High School) and Division II national Player of the Year candidate Stephen Dennis (West Chester, PA/Henderson) scored 24 points each to lead Kutztown past Mansfield for the second time this season.
Shameel Carty's 3-pointer with 4:37 left sparked a game-ending 21-7 run that lifted the Clarion University men's basketball team to its first home playoff win in 13 years with a 76-69 win over Mercyhurst College. Carty led the Golden Eagles with 21 points, seven rebounds, five steals and three assists, while Lloyd Harrison added 14 points, nine assists, four rebounds and one steal.
Meanwhile, the women are back in the semifinals for the first time since the 2005-06 season. In its last trip to semifinals, the Golden Bears lost to Edinboro, 77-46.
For women's basketball seniors Rachel Wisemiller (Hazleton, PA/Hazleton Area), Katie Dovey (Willow Hill, PA/Fannett-Metal), Vivian Melvin (Chichester, PA/Chichester) and Chauntelle Schroeder (Toronto, Ontario, CANADA/Mother Teresa), this will be their first trip to the PSAC semifinals. They are looking forward to the challenge of playing against Gannon.
“We're excited to have an opportunity to play Gannon," Melvin said. "We know it's going to be a big challenge. We know that we have to play to the best of our ability and see what happens. Having the experience of playing them helps a little because it gives us a better feel of what we're playing against and what we need to work on.”
In the victory over Bloomsburg, Junior forward Melissa McQuade (Pittsburgh, PA/Shaler) led Kutztown with 22 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists. It was McQuade's seventh double-double of the season. McQuade raised her career point total to 1,150 points. She passed Janelle Needham (1,134) and into seventh place on the all-time Kutztown University women's basketball scoring list.
Senior forward Vivian Melvin (Chichester, PA/Chichester) added 14 points, six rebounds and five assists. Senior guard Rachel Wisemiller (Hazleton, PA/Hazleton Area) finished with 13 points, leaving her at 997 for her career. Senior center Chauntelle Schroeder (Toronto, Ontario, CANADA/Mother Teresa) added 12 points and five rebounds before fouling out.
Carrie Nolan and Kim Vargas both posted season-highs in scoring for Gannon in its 81-67 victory over Edinboro, leading all players with 21 points each. Vargas was close to perfection with a 10-of-12 chart from the field. Crocker recorded 16 points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals in 40 minutes at point guard. Gannon was tied with Edinboro, 35-35, at intermission.
Complete in-depth previews, articles and notes will be available at www.kubears.com later this week.
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