University of Indianapolis Athletics

Complete release (.pdf)

Exhibition 1
UIndy at
Valparaiso
Athletics-Recreation Center
11/01/09, 2:35 pm ET
Live stats: GAMETRACKER
Video: Horizon League Network
Audio/Radio: wicr.uindy.edu

Exhibition 2
UIndy at
Notre Dame
Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center
11/03/08, 7:00 pm ET
Live stats: GAMETRACKER
Audio: wicr.uindy.edu
Radio: WICR 88.7 FM

Exhibition 3
UIndy at
Xavier
Cintas Center
11/07/08, 2:00 pm ET
Live stats: GAMETRACKER
Audio: wicr.uindy.edu
Radio: WICR 88.7 FM HD2


On Tap:  The University of Indianapolis women’s basketball team opens the 2009-10 campaign with three exhibition contests versus Division-I opponents, all within a week’s span.  UIndy begins play at Valparaiso Sunday, Nov. 1, followed by a meeting with Notre Dame Tuesday, Nov. 3, and finally a trip to Xavier Saturday, Nov. 7.

Head Coach LeAnn Freeland:  After compiling a 24-10 mark in 2008-09, Coach Freeland enters her third season at UIndy sporting a 46-18 career record, good for a .719 winning percentage -- the highest in program history.

Freeland has guided UIndy to back-to-back NCAA berths, including its first-ever NCAA Sweet 16 appearance last year.  In one of the tourney’s toughest regions, the Greyhounds took down a pair of top-10 teams at the 2009 Big Dance (No. 3 Hillsdale & No. 9 Quincy) before falling 69-52 to 22nd-ranked Michigan Tech in the Midwest Regional final.

In her rookie year, Freeland won her very first game as head coach and didn’t stop winning through the first 11 contests, setting a program record for most wins to start a season. The Greyhounds finished the season with 13 conference victories and a trip to the GLVC Tournament semifinals.

A week later, in UIndy’s first NCAA appearance since 2005 and sixth overall, Freeland’s inaugural campaign ended in a one-point, first-round loss to eventual national champion and fellow GLVC-member Northern Kentucky.

About Valpo:  Sixteen-year head coach Keith Freeman, who has 13 winning seasons at Valpo to his credit, returns just two starters from last year’s 16-14 team.  The Crusaders won nine of 14 games at the Athletics-Recreation Center a year ago, including wins over Butler and nationally-ranked Purdue.

2008-09 Horizon League All-Newcomer Team member Lauren Kenney represents the team’s top returning scorer and rebounder (10.9 ppg and 6.0 rpg).

Coach Freeman will also gain the services of Kelly Peller and Kelly Watts, as both players sat the entire 2008-09 season.  Peller lost her season to injury after starting 14 games for Valpo two years ago.  Watts, a former Eastern Michigan Eagle, sat per NCAA transfer rules after averaging 7.0 points and 6.2 rebounds while making 22 starts for EMU in 2007-08.

About Notre Dame:  Long-time coach Muffet McGraw enters the 2009-10 campaign just four wins shy of her 500th at the school.  McGraw owns a 496-197 (.716) overall record in her 22 season at Notre Dame, including seven Sweet 16 appearnces and one national championship (2001).

Notre Dame went 22-9 last year with an 11-3 mark at home.  The Irish lost 79-71 to Minnesota in the first round of the NCAAs after earning the 23rd ranking in the final AP poll.

McGraw returns four double-digit scorers from a year ago, including all-BIG EAST first teamer Lindsay Schrader (12.6 ppg, 7.4 rpg).

Incoming freshman Skylar Diggins also looks to make an impact.  The South Bend, Ind. native led the state in scoring as a high school senior  (29.0 ppg) before being named the 2009 Indiana Miss Basketball and the 2009 Naismith National High School Player of the Year.

About Xavier:  XU is enjoying one of the most productive runs in program history.  The defending BIG EAST regular-season champs are coming off a school-record-tying 25-win season that culminated in a third consecutive NCAA berth, also matching a program record.

Eighth-year head coach Kevin McGuff (155-66, .701) will lean on a pair of Indianapolis natives this season.  2008-09 Atlantic 10 Player of the Year Ta’Shia Phillips (Brebeuf Jesuit H.S.) returns for her junior season after pacing the team with 13.9 ppg and 12.1 rpg.  Amber Harris (North Central H.S.) will be back in action after losing her 2008-09 season to injury.  Harris compiled solid averages of 15.3 points and 8.9 rebounds per contest in 2007-08 and was named to the All-Atlantic 10 First Team.

Tournament Run:  The 2008-09 UIndy women’s basketball team earned two upset wins at the NCAA Tournament to become the first squad in program history to win two games in the regional bracket.  The Hounds earned the seventh seed at the eight-team regional and collected wins versus a pair of top-ten schools in No. 3 Hillsdale and ninth-ranked Quincy.  Indianapolis faced a third straight top 25 team in the Midwest Regional final, as No. 22 Michigan Tech downed the Greyhounds 69-52 to advance to the Elite Eight.

Clutch Performer:  All-GLVC guard Jessica Canary (Coatesville, Ind./South Putnam) had quite the NCAA Tournament in 2009.  The junior from Coatesville, Ind. nailed a game-winning triple with 3.7 ticks on the clock to beat third-ranked Hillsdale 73-72.  She followed that up with a career-high 33-point effort in a 74-64 win against No. 9 Quincy.  The lofty point total marked the highest ever by a Greyhound in NCAA Tournament play.

Poll Position:  UIndy’s postseason run earned it a No. 24 ranking in the final  USA Today/ESPN Division II women’s basketball poll.  The Greyhounds cracked the top 25 in the first poll of 2009 to earn its first national ranking since Jan. 12, 2005, but after later peaking at No. 19, the Hounds fell out of the rankings until the season’s final poll.  The Greyhounds’ highest ranking in the poll (since 1996-97) was 7th back on Mar. 12, 2003.

The Hounds come into the current season ranked fourth in the 2009-10 Women’s Division II Bulletin Preseason Poll.  Michigan Tech is the preseason favorite, a year after winning the Midwest region en route to the Elite Eight.

MeiSpace: Sophomore Samantha Meissel (Terre Haute, Ind./Terre Haute North) had one of the best individual seasons ever by a Greyhound last year.  The Terre Haute, Ind. product poured in 581 points on the year, good for the highest single-season total in program history.  She averaged 18.7 points per game – the three-best sum in program history – and garnered second-team all-region accolades from Daktronics after receiving a first-team nod from the conference.

1,000 Point Club:  Two Greyhounds are on pace to crack 1,000 career points early next season.  Senior Jessica Canary (975 points) and junior Samantha  Meissel (958) should reach the milestone within the first few games of the 2009-2010 campaign, and after doing so, will become the program’s 17th and 18th members of the 1,000 point club.  As the highest scoring tandem in the GLVC last season, the two combined to score 33.1 points per contest, the highest combined total by UIndy’s top two scorers since 1994-95.

Perfect 10:  Sam Meissel’s 25-point output versus Saint Joseph’s Jan. 31 was fueled by a flawless 10-for-10 effort from the field. Meissel’s offensive performance featured the most made field goals without a miss by a GLVC woman in over two years. The Terre Haute, Ind. native poured in 19 points before halftime while scoring 12 in just the first 4:16 alone.

35 & Over:  Samantha Meissel’s 35-point output versus Rockhurst Jan. 10 was not only the highest by a Greyhound this season, but also marked just the seventh time* a Greyhound woman put up at least 35 points in a single game.  See below for a list of the highest scoring performances in program history.

Name                    Opponent                      Date             Pts
Liz Ramsey          at IPFW                          01/07/99      39
Kate Silavs           ST. JOSEPH’S             01/30/88      38
Debbie Law         at North Central (Ill.)    01/28/83      37
Erin Moran            at Oakland City            12/04/04      36
Karla Mast            BELLARMINE               01/12/08      36
Debbie Law         GRAND VALLEY          12/01/84       35
Sam Meissel       ROCKHURST               01/10/09      35
_{* single-game records available since 1982-83 season}

Hounds on Radio:  Once again, the Greyhounds will be broadcast live on WICR 88.7 FM.  Join the crew as they bring you all the play-by-play action.  You can also catch the Greyhounds on the Internet via live streaming.  Get details at wicr.uindy.edu.

Hounds on the Web:  Get all the up-to-date information on the Greyhounds anytime, day or night at athletics.uindy.edu.  The official home of Greyhound athletics, you can find rosters, schedules, statistics, news, media information, weekly releases and real-time stats during all home games.