Santa Clara University

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1 Santa Clara University Women's Basketball Weekly Release 500 El Camino Real Santa Clara, CA FAX Schedule/Results DATE OPPONENT W/L SCORE N. 1 Bay Area Pro-Am #! W N. 8 RTU Condica Riga #! W N. 18 Pacific # W N. 20 at Nov. 18 Stanford L N. 25 Providence # W N. 29 at San Jose State W D. 2 at No. 12 Oregon^ L D. 10 at California 2 p.m. D. 13 at Cal Poly 7 p.m. D. 15 at Sacramento State 7:05 p.m. D. 18 at Northern Illinois 7:05 p.m. D. 27 Maryland 7 p.m. D. 30 No. 8 Texas Tech 2 p.m. J. 2 Columbia 5 p.m. J. 11 Pepperdine* 7 p.m. J. 13 Loyola Marymount* 7 p.m. J. 19 at St. Mary s* 7:30 p.m. J. 20 at San Francisco* 7 p.m. J. 25 Portland* 7 p.m. J. 27 Gonzaga* 7 p.m. J. 31 San Diego* 7 p.m. F. 3 at San Diego* 7 p.m. F. 9 at Loyola Marymount* 7 p.m. F. 10 at Pepperdine* 7 p.m. F. 15 San Francisco* 7 p.m. F. 17 St. Mary s* 7 p.m. F. 22 at Gonzaga* 7 p.m. F. 24 at Portland* 7 p.m. M. 1-4 at W.C.C. Tournament San Diego, Calif. Total 3-2, 0-0 WCC # Games played at Bellarmine Prep! Exhibition Game * West Coast Conference Game ^ Will be played at the Rose Garden * indicates West Coast Conference game Rankings by Associated Press All times listed local to site DATE: Dec. 5, 2000 CONTACT: Lisa Eskey Broncos Remain on the Road, Visit California Sunday, Dec. 10 California Berkeley, Calif. 2 p.m. This Week Santa Clara's women's basketball (3-2) remains on the road for the second straight week, but it doesn't have to travel far, as the Broncos will take on East Bay rival California on Sunday. The contest carries special meaning as Bear head coach Caren Horstmeyer joined Cal's staff this spring after 12 years leading the Bronco program. The game will be aired live on Fox Sports Bay Area at 2 p.m. The Opponent California is 2-4 overall this season, with wins over South Alabama and CS Northridge. The Bears are paced by senior guard Courtney Johnson, who is averaging 13 points per game and 3.3 steals per contest. Head coach Caren Horstmeyer is not only hosting her alma mater when the Broncos visit on Sunday, but also a squad she coach for the past 12 seasons. This will be the 39th meeting between the two teams, with Cal holding a dominating 30-8 edge, despite the fact the Broncos have won three of the last four meetings. A Change of Scenery Formerly known as Harold J. Toso Pavilion, the reconstructed Leavey Event Center will be one of the best venues on the West Coast. Santa Clara s loud, supportive fans will only turn up the volume once they see the new floor, a new digital scoreboard and new chairback seating. It s first class and it looks like a big-time arena when you drive by it, head coach Chris Denker said. We re excited to play in it. Recruits are going to want to play in it. It s a great place to call home. While reconstruction of Leavey is completing, Santa Clara is hosting home games at Bellarmine College Prep's Gymnasium. The Broncos won their two exhibition games there and will also host regular season contests against Pacific on Saturday and Providence on Nov. 25 at Bellarmine. After a sixgame road trip, the Broncos will open Leavey for women's basketball action, hosting Maryland on Dec. 27.

2 PAGE 2 DEC. 5, 2000 In the Rankings AP (Dec. 4) 1. Connecticut (40) Tennessee Duke Notre Dame Georgia Purdue Iowa State Texas Tech Rutgers Oregon Auburn Louisiana Tech Penn State Mississippi State Oklahoma Stanford Louisiana State SW Missouri State Xavier Florida North Carolina State Wisconsin Vanderbilt Virginia Texas 7-1 ESPN/USA Today (Dec. 4) 1. Connecticut (39) Tennessee (1) Duke Notre Dame Purdue Georgia Rutgers Texas Tech Iowa State Louisiana Tech Penn State Oregon Auburn Louisiana State Mississippi State Oklahoma SW Missouri State Xavier North Carolina State Virginia Boston College Florida Stanford Vanderbilt Wisconsin 3-3 Italic represents Santa Clara opponents The Starting Lineup Santa Clara returns two starters from the season in senior center Annie Garrison and junior guard Becki Ashbaugh. The trio that has started both exhibitions and predicted to start in the regular season is junior forward Jennifer Glysson, junior guard Caroline Gruening and senior guard Kim Sorenson. Junior forward Tammy Annas, a starter last year, is out for the season after tearing an ACL in her left knee in an October practice. Earning Votes in the WCC Preseason Poll Despite a new head coach and the loss of three starters, Santa Clara was the runaway choice to WCC Coaches Poll 1. Pepperdine (7) SANTA CLARA (1) Saint Mary's Loyola Marymount Portland San Francisco Gonzaga San Diego 9 finish second in the conference according to a preseason coaches' poll released Oct. 18. The Broncos picked up 42 points and one first-place vote. Pepperdine was selected to repeat as WCC Champions, garnering 49 points in the poll. The Waves return four starters from a team that went last season and earned the school's first NCAA bid. Saint Mary's was picked third, followed by Loyola Marymount in the top half of the standings. Portland was picked fifth, followed by San Francisco, Gonzaga and San Diego. In the Rankings Santa Clara began the season unranked, but does face three ranked opponents on its regular-season schedule, according to the Associated Press and ESPN/ USA polls. Santa Clara fell to No. 18 Stanford on Nov. 20 and will face 12th-ranked Oregon on Dec. 2. To end the year, the Broncos host No. 8 Texas Tech on Dec. 30. Not in the Rankings Last week, Santa Clara began a stretch where five of the next six games are against team that posted losing records last season. Up first was South Bay rival San Jose State, who went 3-24 in The Broncos won that one After a loss to No. 12 Oregon, the Broncos remain on the road for matches at California, Cal Poly and Sacramento State. Not including the Ducks, who went 23-8 last season, the combined record of the other five teams is Last Week No. 12 Oregon Downs Santa Clara, Wins Clash of the County Oregon used two key scoring runs to struggle past Santa Clara on Dec. 2. The Ducks went on an 11-2 run in the last 3 1/2 minutes of the first half to tie the game, then had a 14-1 burst early in the second half to take control. Caroline Gruening had 19 points and hit five 3-pointers to lead Santa Clara. The Broncos' leading scorer, Annie Garrison, was held to just eight points in 20 minutes because of foul trouble.

3 PAGE 3 DEC. 5, 2000 Oregon was flustered by Santa Clara's collapsing zone defense, managing just five points in the first 10 1/2 minutes. But after falling behind 19-10, the Ducks started hitting some outside shots to loosen up the middle. An 18-foot jumper by Angelina Wolvert, followed by a 3-pointer from Jamie Craighead, cut the lead to Kourtney Shreve had a steal, got fouled and hit two free throws, and Wolvert made a short jumper with 11 seconds left to tie it at 21. Oregon came out with more energy to start the second half, and the guards got Mowe involved. The 6-foot-5 center took only one shot in the first half, but had five inside baskets and a jumper in the first eight minutes of the second. Garrison picked up her fourth foul just 1:47 into the second half, and the Broncos struggled to find points. Oregon took advantage of several long misses and pushed the ball upcourt, a fastbreak layup by Brianne Meharry capped the 14-1 run and put the Ducks ahead Santa Clara cut the lead to with a minute to go, but Oregon made four free throws in the last 24 seconds to seal it. Kendra Rhea led Santa Clara in an defeat of San Jose State three days prior at the San Jose Event Center. Although the Broncos trial the Spartans 18 to 20 in the all-time series, Santa Clara has now won the last 10 meetings. Dubbed Clash of the County, Rhea posted 17 point to lead a quartet of Broncos in double figures. The Spartans were led by Atari Parker s 29 points, 21 of which came in the second half. Danada Smith added 18 for San Jose State. They were the only two scorers for the Spartans after intermission until the 2-minute mark. Julie Butler made her debut in a Bronco uniform this season, entering the game with 2 minutes left in the first half, and immediately posted a layup. Rhea s layup at the buzzer gave Santa Clara a nine-point lead after 20 minutes of play. Garrison's Double-Doubles Date Opponent Pts Rbs Nov. 18 Pacific Nov. 20 No. 20 Stanford Nov. 25 Providence Senior Center Annie Garrison A two-time unanimous All-WCC performer, Annie Garrison is the team s captain for the second straight year. Garrison made her mark in Santa Clara s recordbooks early, setting the career total for shots blocked during her sophomore season. She currently has 170 blocks, doubling second-place Christine Rigby s 83 blocks from Garrison could also possibly finish her career as one of the all-time best field goal percentage shooters and rebounders in Santa Clara annals. And entering the season with 785 points, could become only the 12th Bronco all time to surpass the 1,000-point mark. She's currently at 853. A leader off the court as well, Garrison carries a 3.74 in mathematics and is a pre-season favorite for All-Academic honors. Returning Scoring Production SCU (1,560)... 73% Annie Garrison (355)... 17% Becki Ashbaugh (292)... 14% Tammy Annas (260)... 12% Jennifer Glysson (219)... 10% Julie Butler (150)... 7% Caroline Gruening (85)... 4% Kim Sorenson (93)... 4% Kendra Rhea (39)... 2% Jennifer Bradley (6)... 1% Courtney Cushing (30)... 1% Kristin Franklin (31)... 1% Returning Rebound Production SCU (943)... 82% Annie Garrison (199)... 17% Tammy Annas (138)... 12% Jennifer Glysson (140)... 12% Becki Ashbaugh (82)... 7% Julie Butler (77)... 7% Kim Sorenson (49)... 4% Kristin Franklin (26)... 2% Caroline Gruening (20)... 2% Kendra Rhea (26)... 2% Jennifer Bradley (1)... 1% Courtney Cushing (15)... 1% Returning Assist Production SCU (396)... 74% Becki Ashbaugh (155)... 29% Caroline Gruening (50)... 9% Annie Garrison (44)... 8% Tammy Annas (37)... 7% Jennifer Glysson (33)... 6% Kim Sorenson (32)... 6% Julie Butler (25)... 5% Kristin Franklin (13)... 2% Kendra Rhea (4)... 1% Jennifer Bradley (2)... 1% Courtney Cushing (1)... 1% Returning Steals Production SCU (167)... 70% Tammy Annas (39)... 16% Jennifer Glysson (28)... 12% Becki Ashbaugh (20)... 8% Annie Garrison (20)... 8% Caroline Gruening (19)... 8% Kim Sorenson (12)... 5% Kristin Franklin (10)... 4% Julie Butler (7)... 3% Kendra Rhea (6)... 3% Courtney Cushing (5)... 2% Jennifer Bradley (1)... 1%

4 PAGE 4 DEC. 5, 2000 Rhea of Light for Broncos Sophomore forward Kendra Rhea put on a show last week at San Jose State, posting a career-high 19 points, making nine of 13. She's currently third on the team in shooting average, at 9.2 per game. She's also pulled down 20 rebounds, or about four per contest. Rhea has started three games this season, after appearing in 17 as a freshman, averaging 2.3 points per game. Freshman Faces Alex Gientke, Megan Nelson and Jennie Rondel make the trio of new faces that join the team this season. Guards Gientke and Nelson join the backcourt. From Ventura High School in Southern California, Gientke was named Player of the Year in a solid area of basketball talent. Described as having a good head for the game, Denker said her three-point shooting ability will give Santa Clara greater depth. From South Eugene High School in Oregon, Nelson is a 5-10 guard recovering from an ACL tear she suffered in November while playing soccer. An All-State player, Nelson is used to winning, as her team was ranked 14th during last season by USA Today. Rondel is the lone newcomer to the frontcourt, arriving from a very successful Washington program. Once she finds a role to settle into, she should make great strides in the collegiate game. Rebounding Connection Seniors Annie Garrison and Jen Glysson combined for 27 rebounds in the team's season-opening victory over Pacific, one more than the Tigers' entire roster. After five games, Garrison is leading the team with 9.4 boards per game, with Glysson right behind her with a 9.0 average. Behind the Arc Santa Clara drilled seven three-point baskets in its opening-night victory against Pacific. Senior Kim Sorenson posted four of those, finishing the night with 14 points. Junior Caroline Gruening added two treys, while junior Becki Ashbaugh recorded the final one. Making 7 of 16, the Broncos finished the game shooting 43.8 percent from behind the arc. Gruening had a stellar showing at 12th-ranked Oregon over the weekend, making five three-pointers en route to a career-high 19 points. Assist Production The Broncos are averaging 16.6 assists per game, three more than their opponents five games into the season. Becki Ashbaugh leads all guards with 37 this season, with a career-high 13 assists against 12th-ranked Oregon last weekend. Season Openers Santa Clara's win over Pacific on Nov. 18 marked the eighth season-opening victory for the Broncos in the last 10 years and 22nd overall in 38 seasons. Additionally, it was the first season-opening game played at home in four years. For Scores, Results & Breaking News The Bronco Sportsline On the Internet Exhibition Wrap Up Five players scored in double figures to lead Santa Clara to a win over RTU Clondica, a club team from Riga, Latvia, in the Broncos' final exhibition contest of the preseason Nov. 8 at Bellarmine Prep. Annie Garrison and Becki Ashbaugh scored 20 points apiece to lead the Broncos. Clondica led the game early before junior Caroline Gruening hit a three-pointer with the score tied at 11 to put the Broncos ahead for good at the 14:39 mark in the first half. Santa Clara led by as many as 12 first-half points before Clondica cut the lead to just four points at the end of the period. Santa Clara pulled ahead by double-digits on a three-point field goal by Kim Sorenson to give the Broncos a lead at the 10:04 mark of the second half. The Broncos extended their lead past the 20- point barrier with just over 2:00 left in the contest. A layup by Sorenson with eight seconds left provided the final score. Gruening finished the game with 18 points, including 4-of-6 from the three-point stripe. Kendra Rhea added 14 points, while Sorenson added 10 for the Broncos. Santa Clara opened the season Nov. 1 with a exhibition win over the Bay Area Pro Am at Bellarmine. Ashbaugh led all scorers with 22 points while Garrison added 20 points and led all defensive efforts with 12 rebounds. Santa Clara did not make a field goal for the first five-plus minutes of the game, until Ashbaugh drove through the middle for the layup. The Broncos tied the score at 15 at the midpoint of the first half then went on a 12-3 run. The second half saw the Broncos open up the scoring, taking a 10-point lead with 13 minutes left.

5 PAGE 5 DEC. 5, 2000 Santa Clara's defense took over, allowing only three field goals for Pro Am in the game's last 10 minutes as SCU extended its lead to 25 before the final 18-point margin. Denker Signs Four Recruits Women s basketball head coach Chris Denker announced the signing of four Washingtonians to National Letters of Intent: Kim Butler of Tacoma, Quinn Thomas of Kent, Kayla Huss of Everett and Tina Donahue of Stanwood. Butler is the younger sister of junior Bronco forward Julie Butler. With the newcomers, the squad will comprise of nine players from the state of Washington. Returning to the team next year will be Becki Ashbaugh of Bellevue, Tammy Annas of Enumclaw, Jennie Rondel of Kirkland, Julie Butler of Tacoma and Courtney Cushing of Brush Prairie. These four are going to present our program with a lot of new things, Denker said. They re going to help stabilize our three-point shooting core, which we felt we lost a little last year with the departure of Katie Pursley and Stephanie Rogers. We re also going to improve areas of athleticism, defense and rebounding. Head Coach Chris Denker Entering his first season as head coach, Chris Denker (Oregon '90) is no stranger to Santa Clara basketball. Serving as an assistant coach on Caren Horstmeyer's staff for the last seven years, Denker becomes only the sixth head coach in the 36-year history of the program. Under Horstmeyer, Denker was the top recruiting and offensive coordinator. His teams amassed a (.682) overall record, including a (.704) mark in West Coast Conference play. The Broncos have also won three WCC Championships under his watch and advanced to the postseason four times. He inherits a squad that returns 11 letterwinners and three starters from a team that went 21-9 and participated in the Women s National Invitation Tournament. He has also been an assistant coach Idaho State University and South Eugene (Ore.) High School. As a collegiate player, Denker lettered in basketball as a freshman at Boise State University before transferring to Linn Benton Community College the next year. At Linn Benton, he served as the basketball team captain and earned honorable mention all-league recognition in Santa Clara Roster No. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. Exp. Hometown/Last School 3 Becki Ashbaugh* G Jr V Bellevue, Wash./Bothell HS 11 Caroline Gruening G Jr V Juneau, Alaska/Juneau-Douglas HS 14 Annie Garrison* C Sr V Saratoga, Calif./Monta Vista HS 20 Tammy Annas F Jr V Enumclaw, Wash./Enumclaw HS Pronunciation Jennifer Gli-Son 22 Megan Nelson G Fr HS Eugene, Ore./South Eugene HS Caro-LINE GREE-ning 23 Kim Sorenson G Sr V Redmond, Wash./Eastlake HS Kendra RAY 24 Jennifer Bradley G So V Arvada, Colo./Arvada West HS 25 Kristin Franklin G Sr V Pleasanton, Calif./Monta Vista HS 32 Jennifer Glysson* F Sr V Cupertino, Calif./Archbishop Mitty HS 34 Jennie Rondel F Fr. 6-0 HS Kirkland, Wash./Lake Washington HS 35 Alexandria Gientke G Fr HS Ventura, Calif./Ventura HS 44 Julie Butler F So V Tacoma, Wash./Bellarmine Prep 52 Kendra Rhea F So V Lakeside, Calif./El Capitan HS 55 Courtney Cushing F So V Brush Prairie, Wash./Prairie HS * Team Captain Head Coach: Chris Denker, first season (Oregon 90) Assistant Coaches: Jeff Dow, first season (Oregon 88) Benita Martin, first season (Colorado 92)