DC Women's Basketball picked to finish eighth in the HCAC

GREENWOOD, Ind. – Manchester College has been voted the favorite to capture the 2006-07 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference women’s basketball championship. The Spartans received eight of the nine first-place votes in the HCAC Coaches Preseason Poll and collected 79 points in all. Franklin College finished a distant second in the preseason voting with 63 total points.

Anderson finished third in the voting with 60 points and was followed by Rose-Hulman which claimed 50 points and the final first place vote. Transylvania University (44 pts.), Hanover College (44), College of Mt. St. Joseph (33), Defiance College (22) and Bluffton University (10) rounded out the poll.

Manchester finished second behind Franklin in the regular season last winter, finishing the 2005-06 campaign with a record of 21-8, 10-4 HCAC. The Spartans knocked off the Grizzlies to claim the HCAC tournament title, but then fell in the first round of the NCAA Division-III tournament to #3 Washington-St. Louis.

Manchester returns two All-HCAC selections, including last year’s Freshman-of-the-Year Stacey Wendel ( Plymouth, IN/H.S.). Wendel averaged 13.5 points per game as a freshman and also chipped in with 5 rebounds per contest. In last year’s HCAC tournament, Wendel earned the tournament MVP honors. The other returning all conference player for MC is sophomore forward Kelley Meiklejohn ( Ft. Wayne, IN/Carroll). Last year as a freshman, Meiklejohn averaged 11.5 points per game for the Spartans. One other player to watch this winter will be senior Heather Terflinger ( Manchester, IN/North Manchester). Terflinger averaged 10.6 points and 5.3 rebounds as a junior.

Franklin College claimed the regular season title last fall, finishing with a 24-5 record, 13-1 in conference play before falling to Manchester in the conference tournament final. The Grizzlies graduated a handful of talent from last year’s team. Lindsey Roberson received co-MVP honors last winter in the HCAC. Roberson averaged a team high 16.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game for the Grizzlies. FC also graduated Becky Ballard and Leslie Mehrlich from last year’s successful team. Ballard averaged 14.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, while Mehrlich averaged 11.2 points and 4.9 rebounds. Between the three individuals, Franklin will have lost 42 points from last winter. The key returning players for FC this winter will be point guard Brittany Beehler ( Wakasusa, IN/Penn) and guard Kelly Snider (Fishers, IN/Hamilton Southeastern). Last season Beehler chipped in 3.5 points per game while playing 29 minutes per game and Snider averaged 8.4 points a game.

The Anderson women’s team is coming off a 16-11 regular season, finishing 8-6 in conference play. The Ravens return two individuals that could help AU contend for a conference championship. Stacie Jennings ( Indianapolis, IN) and Chelsie Haines ( Knightstown, IN) return after successful seasons in 2005-06. Jennings averaged 11.1 points and 6.5 rebounds at the center position for AU, earning team MVP and All-HCAC honors. Haines averaged 10 points a game as a sophomore, also earning a spot on the All-Conference team.

The opening weekend for all teams is Nov. 17-18 with the first conference games scheduled for Nov. 29.

2006-07 Women’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll

Team Points (first place votes)
1. Manchester 79 (8)
2. Franklin 63
3. Anderson 60
4. Rose-Hulman 50 (1)
T-5. Transylvania 44
T-5. Hanover 44
7. Mt. St. Joseph 33
8. Defiance 22
9. Bluffton 10

2006-07 Women’s Basketball Players to Watch

Anderson: Stacie Jennings (Sr., C, 5-11, Westfield, IN), Kayla Martin (So., F, 5-10, Bedford, IN), Chelsea Haines (So., G, 5-8, Knightstown, IN)

Bluffton: Tanya Rickenberg (Sr., G, 5-6, Defiance, Ohio/Paulding), Angie Lee (Jr., F, 5-10, Mt. Blanchard, OH/Vanlue), Lindsay Bush (Jr., C, 5-11, Howard, OH/East Knox), Amanda Bell (Jr.,G, 5-4, Napoleon, OH/Liberty Center)

Defiance: Sarah Grime (Fr., F, 5-9, Archbold, OH), Kayla Mengerink (Jr., G, 5-6, Napoleon, Ohio/Napoleon), Sarah Bird (Jr., G/F, 5-7, Fayette, OH)

Franklin: Brittany Beehler (Sr., G, 5-3, Wakarusa, IN/Penn), Katie Douglas (Sr., F, 6-0, Flat Rock, IN/Shelbyville), Kelly Snider (Jr., G, 5-11, Fishers, IN/Hamilton Southeastern)

Hanover: Kim Hardesty (Jr, C, 6-2, New Albany, Ind., New Albany), Rachel Walters (So., F, 5-8, Ladoga, IN/Southmont), Kristin Malone (So., G, 5-6, Connersville, IN/H.S.), Angie Thieman (Sr., F, 5-10, Bennington, IN/Switz Co.), Kim Byrdwell (Jr., F, 5-7, Danville, IN/H.S.), Chloe Wonnell (Fr., G, 5-6, Mt. Carmel, IL)

Manchester: Stacey Wendel (So., G, 5-8, Plymouth, IN/H.S.), Kelley Meiklejohn (So., F, 5-9, Ft. Wayne, IN/Carroll), Heather Terflinger (Sr., G, 5-7, North Manchester, Ind./Manchester)

Mount St. Joseph: Maria Eichhold (Jr., C, 6-2, Greenwood, IN/Centre Grove), Christy Marsh (Sr., G, 5-7, Cincinnati, Ohio/Walnut), Amanda Hoffman (Sr., G, 5-8, Cincinnati, Ohio/McAuley), Shanika Logan (Jr. G, 5-5, Cincinnati, OH/Winton Woods)

Rose-Hulman: Suzy Carlson (Sr., G/F, 5-10, State College, PA/H.S), Rebekah Forsyth (Sr., F, 5-10, Farmersburg, IN/North Central), Jill Floyd (Jr., G, 5-6, Bloomington, IL/Olympia), Candace Procter (Jr., G, 5-6, Southfield, MI/Groves), Lindsey Reichle (So., G, 5-3, Connersville, IN/H.S.)

Transylvania: Cindy Beavin (Sr., G, 5-6, Brandenburg, Ky./Meade Co.), Jessica Hanson (Sr., F, 5-10, Lexington, Ky./Dunbar), Julie Leach (So., 5-11, Beaver Dam, KY/Ohio Co.), Jackie Distler (So., 5-9, Louisville, KY/Sacred Heart), Haley Riney (Sr., 5-6, Owensboro, KY/Owensboro Catholic)

- Release courtesy of Ryan Davis at the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference