Gannon, Mercyhurst Up Next for AU Cage Teams
January 28, 2003

Ashland University head basketball coach Roger Lyons is a diehard New York Yankees fan. But right now, if you ask him about Murderers’ Row, he won’t mention Tony Lazzeri. Instead, he’s liable to bring up Josh Morgan or Justin Shouse.

This week, the Eagles play two critical games at Kates Gymnasium, hosting Gannon (15-5/7-3 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) on Thursday (Jan. 30, 7:30 p.m.) and Mercyhurst (12-8/4-6) on Saturday (Feb. 1, 3 p.m.). The Eagles are 13-6, 5-5 in the conference. They enter Thursday’s game with three consecutive losses and have won just once in their last five games. This has been a murderous stretch against the rugged GLIAC South Division. Every game left on the schedule is against a GLIAC South Division foe.

The Eagles were off to a great start – at one point they were 11-1. Now, they’re in fourth place in the GLIAC South Division with seven games remaining in the regular season. If the Eagles are to enjoy a postseason, they need to quickly get back on track.

“We can’t focus on anything other than playing well,” said Lyons. “We can’t focus on the tournament, even talking about winning. We just have to focus on playing as well as we possibly can.”

In addition to the action on the court, there will be plenty going on around this week’s games. Thursday is “Pack the House/Greek Night). There will be a Greek Wing Eating Contest and free t-shirts and pizza will be among the giveaways. Free mini-basketballs, courtesy of the Eagles’ Nest, will be given away.

Saturday is Girl Scout and Boy Scout Day and all scouts will be admitted free. The Central Hower Step Team will perform at halftime and an autograph session will be held following the game.

Men's Preview
Suceeding against Gannon and Mercyhurst won’t be easy. Gannon is tied with Findlay for first place in the GLIAC South. Saturday night, the Golden Knights edged Mercyhurst, 76-73 in overtime.

Ashland lost at Hillsdale on Saturday, 95-66. AU played without senior guard Isaac Kincaid due to a hamstring injury. That was a monumental loss because Kincaid is fifth in the GLIAC in scoring (18.7 ppg.).

Kincaid’s absence really hurts when the Eagles fall behind. That’s been another concern recently – AU has trailed at halftime in five consecutive games. Getting far behind without your leading scorer is a prescription for trouble. Kincaid is listed as questionable for Thursday’s game.

Another issue the Eagles will have to deal with against Gannon is size. The Golden Knights, like most teams, hold an edge there over the Eagles. GU can turn to 6-10, 260-pound sophomore Geoff Husted (13.6 ppg., 7.3 rgp.) and 6-9, 240-pound forward-center Josh Morgan (13.4 ppg., 7.6 rpg.). Morgan is sixth in the GLIAC in rebounding and Husted is seventh. Morgan is fourth in the loop in rejections (1.5 bpg.) and is this week’s GLIAC South Division player of the week. He had 22 points and 12 rebounds at Mercyhurst.

“Size has hurt us this year more than anything else,” admitted Lyons.

It will be interesting to see how AU’s 6-5 sophomore center Mike Campbell fares against that forest. Campbell is one of the most active inside players in the league. He’s third in the GLIAC in rebounding (9.6 rpg.) and is the league leader in blocked shots (37-1.95 bpg.). He’s also eighth in steals (1.68 spg.). Campbell is averaging 9.9 ppg.

Gannon’s leading scorer is 6-0 senior guard Marc Sturdivant (16.0 ppg.). The Eagles will also have to contend with 6-2 junior Brandon Andrews (14.9 ppg.). He’s shooting 51 percent (51-107) from three-point range.

Against Mercyhurst, the Eagles will face one of the GLIAC’s most explosive tandems. Josh Helm, a 6-6 junior forward, is tied for third in the league in scoring (18.9 ppg.). Justin Shouse, a 5-11 junior guard, is responsible for getting him the ball and he’s been excellent in that regard. Shouse is third in the league in assists (4.65 apg.) and is the GLIAC leader in steals (57-2.85 spg.). Add in 6-8 senior center Scott Melle, and the Lakers have an excellent core group of players.

Shouse’s battle with AU senior point guard Angelo Edwards should be one of the most entertaining clashes of the year. Edwards is averaging 14.3 ppg., and is eighth in the league in assists (3.42 apg.). He’s also sixth in three-point field goal percentage (.455) and seventh in steals (1.72 spg.).

Those kind of matchups will go a long way in determining who wins this week’s games.

“When you play in a conference as competitive as this conference the majority of your games are going to be close,” explained Lyons. “In close games, you need to have players step up and make plays. It used to be you’d say you need a go-to guy, but a go-to guy is only on offense. Making plays can be getting a defensive rebound, blocking a shot. You have to have one or two guys deliver in crunch time. That’s exactly what we need right now.”

Women’s Preview
The AU women will host Gannon on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. and meet Mercyhurst Saturday at 1 p.m. The Eagles are locked in a battle with Gannon and Findlay for third place in the GLIAC South Division. The team that claims that spot will be in the league playoffs.

All three teams are 3-7 in conference play. Ashland is 8-11 overall after dropping games on the road to Wayne State and Hillsdale last week. Gannon is 7-11 and 3-7. Mercyhurst enters the week with a 4-14 card, 1-9 in the league.

Gannon won at Mercyhurst on Saturday, 66-52 after trailing by 15 points in the first half. Kelly Irwin, a 5-7 junior guard, leads GU in scoring (14.2 ppg.). Jen Gwin, a 5-5 sophomore guard, is second in the GLIAC in assists (120, 7.6 apg.) and fifth in steals (43, 2.53 spg.).

“They are kind of a mirror image of our team,” said AU head coach Sue Ramsey. “We both got off to good starts. Right now, it’s a battle between us, Gannon and Findlay. We all know what we have to do.”

One thing the Eagles know is that much of their success revolves around junior forward Alanna Buurma. She’s sixth in the conference in rebounding (7.6 rpg.) and 10th in scoring (15.3 ppg.). She’s also fourth in field goal percentage (.579) and ninth in free throw percentage (.844). Last week at Wayne State, she notched career highs in points (26) and rebounds (17).

At Hillsdale last Saturday freshmen Dee Bethune and Maria Dehne came off the bench and played well. Bethune, a guard, fired in eight points and Dehne, a forward, had five rebounds. If they can maintain that level of play, it would be a big plus for AU down the stretch.

“I was real pleased with Kristy Ritchie, Dee and Maria,” said Ramsey. “It’s good to see that at this time of the year. You hope at this time in the season they (freshmen) are coming along and learning the system.”

Ritchie, a senior point guard, had eight points, six rebounds and six steals at Hillsdale.

Mercyhurst is paced by senior guard Katie Lorincz. She’s averaging 13.0 ppg., and is second in the league in steals (61, 3.59 spg.). She needs 135 more points to reach 1,000 for her career.