Game 7• W&L (1-5, 1-3 ODAC) at Eastern Mennonite (7-2, 3-2 ODAC) • January 8, 2003 • 6:00 pm

Game 8 • W&L (1-5, 1-3 ODAC) vs. Virginia Wesleyan (3-3, 2-2 ODAC) • January 10, 2003 • 7:00 pm

Game 9 • W&L (1-5, 1-3 ODAC) vs. Lynchburg (6-3, 4-1 ODAC) • January 11, 2003 • 2:00 pm

PROBABLE STARTERS: 2002-03 Stats
#12 Louisa Feve, Fr., G, 5-8, 14.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.2 spg
#22 Emily Barker, So., F, 5-11, 6.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 0.5 bpg
#24 Bethany Dannelly, So., G, 5-5, 10.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.7 apg
#32 Elizabeth Igo, Sr., F, 5-8, 4.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 1.0 apg
#44 Sarah Michaels, Jr., F, 5-8, 11.2 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 78.6 FT%

OFF THE BENCH:
#50 Austin Calhoun, Sr., C, 5-11, 2.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 0.7 bpg
#20 Heather Coleman, Jr., G, 5-8, 2.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 2.0 spg
#42 Peggy Altman, So., G, 5-7, 1.0 ppg, 0.5 rpg, 0.5 apg
#34 Ashley Brown, Fr., G, 5-2, 0.7 rpg, 0.7 apg, 0.5 spg
#10 Casey Sharpe, So., G, 5-3, N/A
#30 Sarah Williamson, Fr., G, 5-5, N/A

COMMANDING THE GENERALS:
Bryan Snyder (W&L ‘95) is in his first year as the Generals’ Interim Head Coach. Snyder has been the assistant women’s coach the last two seasons, aiding the development of last year’s ODAC Player of the Year (Jessica Mentz) and a Second Team All-ODAC selection (Megan Babst). In the fall, Snyder is the head coach of the W&L volleyball team. The reigning two-time ODAC Coach of the Year, he guided the Generals to their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance this season and a school-record 32-8 mark overall. Snyder is assisted by Amy Forbes (Salisbury ‘01). Forbes is also the assistant women’s soccer coach, and this year helped lead the Generals to their first ODAC Championship, first NCAA Tournament, first national ranking and a school-record 17 wins.

OPPOSING COACHES:
Head Coach Mike Dunavant (Bridgewater ‘77) enters his second year at the helm of the Eastern Mennonite women’s basketball team. He has amassed a career mark of 168-143 overall, and has contributed to three NCAA Tournament teams, won six conference championships and been named a coach of the year six times. He is assisted by Mike Ely and Garret Brink.

Joanne Renn (Old Dominion ‘76) is in her sixth season as the leader of the Virginia Wesleyan women’s hoop team where she has a career mark of 65-64. She is joined on the sideline by Don Proehl and Kendra Robbins.

Fourth-year Head Coach Richie Waggoner (Roanoke ‘92) has compiled a 35-48 career mark at Lynchburg. In 2000-01 he led the Hornets to a 13-12 record and their first berth in the ODAC Tournament in five years. Joining him on the bench are Assistant Coaches Warner Dyke, Lauren Hedden and Brian Puckett.

ALL-TIME SERIES:
EMU holds a slim 9-8 edge over W&L in their all-time series. Last season the Royals took both meetings, winning, 56-52, in the Warner Center, and 66-54 in Harrisonburg, Va.

Virginia Wesleyan claims an 11-7 series advantage over the Generals in their 18 prior showdowns. A year ago, W&L swept the season series with wins in Norfolk, Va. (59-44), and in the Warner Center (60-53).

This week’s Lynchburg-W&L matchup will break the all-time head-to-head deadlock (8-8). The teams split last season, with Lynchburg picking up a 66-56 win in Lynchburg, Va., and W&L recording a 62-37 decision in the Warner Center.

THE LAST MEETING:
Eastern Mennonite opened up a 17-point halftime advantage (35-18) before holding on for a 66-54 win in Harrisonburg, Va., last Feb. 6. Pacing the Royals was then-freshman Jenny Cline, who scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed five rebounds. Then-juniors Emily Misak (17 points, 11 boards) and Emily Mullet (11 points) joined Cline in double figures. Senior guard Sarah Schmidt led W&L with a team-high 14 points, including four three-pointers. Senior center Megan Babst notched a double-double with 10 points and 18 rebounds, while senior forward Jessica Mentz chipped in eight points and 14 boards.

W&L clinched an ODAC Tournament berth with a 60-53 win over VWC in its last home game of the season last Feb. 14. Senior center Megan Babst led the Generals’ attack by recording game-highs in points (32), rebounds (18) and blocked shots (4). Senior forward Jessica Mentz also had a double-double, tallying 16 points and 11 boards. Then-sophomore guard Devin Allen scored a team-high 18 points for Virginia Wesleyan, while then-junior guard Angelique Cavanaugh contributed 12 points.

Then-freshman point guard Bethany Dannelly established a new school-record with 11 assists as the Generals defeated Lynchburg, 62-37, last Jan. 16 in the Warner Center. Senior forward Jessica Mentz led the Generals with 29 points and 13 rebounds, while senior center Megan Babst chipped in with 13 points and four rebounds. Then-freshman forward Emily Barker tallied 11 points. Senior forward Erika Smith paced the Hornets with eight points and three rebounds.

ON TAP:
W&L hits the road for three away games on Tues., Jan. 14, when it travels to Hollins for a 7:00 pm game. The Generals then play at Randolph-Macon (Fri., Jan. 17 at 7:00 pm) and at Virginia Wesleyan (Sat., Jan. 18 at 5:00 pm).

LAST TIME OUT:
The Roanoke women’s basketball team used a 14-2 blitz to open up a 44-13 advantage with 15:00 remaining in the second half and coasted to a 72-30 win over Washington and Lee on Saturday afternoon at the Warner Center. The Generals were led by junior forward Sarah Michaels who finished with a team-high 10 points. Senior forward Elizabeth Igo corralled a game-high 11 rebounds.

SCOUTING EASTERN MENNONITE:
Eastern Mennonite outscored Roanoke 7-3 over the final 2:29 to pull out a 60-56 win on Sunday in Salem, Va. Freshman center Amanda Renalds, who totaled 12 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots, led four Lady Royals in double-digits. Senior forward Emily Misak, freshman guard Carrie Grandstaff and freshman guard Laura Ludholtz scored 11 points apiece, and Misak finished the game with six rebounds while Grandstaff and Ludholtz each recorded four steals.

BABY WE WERE BORN TO RUN:
The Boss probably wasn’t crooning about this trio, but the three-some of sophomore guard Casey Sharpe and freshmen guards Ashley Brown and Sarah Williamson all were born to run. Each runs cross country in the fall before donning hightops and streaking all over the hardwood in the winter.

LAST ONE STANDING:
Forward Elizabeth Igo (5-foot-8), a co-captain and one of two seniors on the team, is the only four-year player on this year’s roster. Minus last season’s frontcourt of ODAC Player of the Year Jessica Mentz and Second-Team All-ODAC selection Megan Babst, Igo is helping to fill the void with hard-nosed defense and rebounding. This season, she is averaging 4.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.

THE FEVE-BOT:
Where Dr. Evil used the blonde Fem-Bots as a last-gasp effort to thwart the International Man of Mystery, the Generals call upon a brown-haired basketballing version to score points and rebound with robotic efficiency. So far this season, freshman guard Louisa Feve has been up to the task, averaging 14.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.2 steals per contest. Feve scored a career-high 25 points in a losing effort against Randolph-Macon (1/2).

A CALLOW CREW:
Seven of the 11 players on W&L are sophomores or freshmen. There are four sophomores (Peggy Altman, Emily Barker, Bethany Dannelly and Casey Sharpe) and three freshmen (Ashley Brown, Louisa Feve and Sarah Williamson).

HOOPIN’ AND HORSIN’ AROUND:
After a year off, sweet-shooting junior forward Sarah Michaels has un-retired her abundance of game and made herself available to the Generals. Two years ago the freshman hoopster exhibited great promise, averaging 7.0 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. When not raining threes and collecting rebounds, Michaels often horses around -- as a member of the W&L riding team. At the James Madison/Bridgewater Invitational, Michaels took top honors in the novice fences. Despite not having played organized hoops in over a year, Michaels has hit the ground running this season, posting averages of 11.2 points and a team-high 7.0 rebounds per game. So far this season she has recorded career-highs in points (24 against Elmira) and rebounds (11 versus Randolph-Macon).

IRON MAIDEN:
No, sophomore point guard Bethany Dannelly is not a member of the British heavy metal band. Rather, thus far, she’s been the women’s-basketball-playing equivalent of the famed Iron Horse (Lou Gehrig), who played in 2,130 consecutive games for the New York Yankees. For her career, Dannelly has played in all 32 games, earning 29 starts. This season she is logging an average of 39.7 minutes per game, including a 45-minute night against Elmira (11/23). As a freshman she established a W&L single-season record for assists with 152. Her per-game average of 5.8 assists was the ninth-highest in NCAA Division III. She checks in with averages of 10.2 points, 5.0 boards, 2.7 assists and 1.8 steals per contest. For her play in the Diversified Invitational, Dannelly was named to the all-tournament team.

BARKER KNOWS:
Barker knows basketball. Barker knows soccer. Barker knows lacrosse. This year, Barker knows track. Reminiscent of Bo Jackson, sophomore forward Emily Barker is a true multi-sport athlete. The leading returning scorer (6.2 ppg) and rebounder (3.0) from last year’s team, Barker also is (women’s basketball, soccer), has been (lacrosse) or will be (track) a participant in several other sports at W&L. As an Honorable Mention All-ODAC goalie for the ODAC-champion W&L women’s soccer team, she posted a 0.62 goals-against average in making 60 saves for a .845 save percentage and six shutouts. As a midfielder for the lacrosse team a year ago, she tallied three goals, but plans to put her athleticism on display this spring as a member of the Generals’ track team. Through four games this season, Barker is averaging 6.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 0.5 blocks per game.

FIVE-OH:
Fitting that the one sporting the highest number is also the tallest player on the team. No. 50, senior center and co-captain Austin Calhoun (5-foot-11), has enlisted to protect and to guard the Generals’ paint to her utmost abilities. This year, she has posted per-game averages of 2.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists. Her 1-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio is tops on the team.

-- GENERALS --