3/3/2008 - NCAA REGIONAL: Bruins to Meet Chapman Friday in NCAA Regional in Tacoma
NEWBERG, Ore. - Having tied the school record for wins in a season by going 23-4, the George Fox University Bruins will try to set a new record against the Chapman University Panthers (24-3) in the first round of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball National Championship Tournament on Friday, March 7, at the West Regional hosted by the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash.
In the other regional game Friday, the host Puget Sound Loggers (22-4) will take on the University of La Verne Leopards (20-7), with the two winners meeting Saturday in the championship game for the right to advance to a sectional and the "Sweet 16". George Fox and Chapman will play at 5:00 p.m. Friday, followed by Puget Sound and La Verne at 7:00 p.m., with the championship game Saturday set for 7:00 p.m. Ticket prices are $7 for adults and $3 for students (with ID), seniors and children (12 and under). Children under 2 will be admitted free of charge.
George Fox received one of 21 at-large "Pool C" bids after tying for the Northwest Conference crown with Puget Sound but falling to the Loggers in the NWC Tournament title game. Chapman was one of three teams taken out of "Pool B" for independents. Puget Sound and La Verne of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference earned two of the 39 automatic bids given to conference or conference tournament champions.
The Bruins and Panthers have met once before, also in tournament play, when George Fox hosted Chapman in the second round of the national tournament on March 5, 2005, and posted an 86-55 win. George Fox and La Verne met for the only time on Nov. 25, 2005, when the Bruins took an 87-54 win over the Leopards in the D3 in Hawaii Hoops Classic in Honolulu, Hawai'i.
The Bruins and Loggers are very familiar with each other, of course. If they should happen to meet in the regional finals, it would be their fourth time to face each other this season, just as happened between them last year. George Fox defeated Puget Sound in the first meeting this year 45-39 in Newberg on Jan. 5, but the Loggers returned the favor 59-43 in Tacoma on Feb. 2, then took a 62-52 win Friday in Tacoma in the NWC Tournament finale. George Fox trails the all-time series with Puget Sound 14-16 since 1982, going 10-5 at home vs. the Loggers and 4-11on the road.
In the latest D3hoops.com poll (not counting last week's games), George Fox was ranked 18th, Puget Sound 22nd, and Chapman was third among "others receiving votes" with 27 points. In the ESPN/USA Today/ Women's Basketball Coaches Association poll, George Fox was 20th and Puget Sound was 22nd, while Chapman and La Verne were not listed.
The Bruins are led by two-time NWC Player of the Year Katy Campbell (13.7 ppg, 7.6 rpg), a senior forward from Springfield, Ore., and First Team All-NWC center Melissa Marek-Farris (10.8 ppg, 6.4 rpg), a senior from Glide, Ore. Senior point guard Tiffany Behary (8.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg) from Lake Oswego, Ore., was honorable mention All-NWC. Also expected to start for the Bruins are senior wings Kaleigha Ramey (7.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg) from Spokane, Wash., and Jaime Hubka (6.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg) from Bellingham, Wash. George Fox coach Scott Rueck, who repeated as NWC Coach of the Year, carries a 226-84 record in 12 seasons into the tournament.