Mastodons Head to Oakland for Saturday Showdown

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FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- The IPFW women's basketball team has won five of their last six games and are 3-1 during the month of February heading into a weekend contest with the Oakland Golden Grizzlies on Saturday, Feb. 23. Game time is scheduled for 2 p.m.

ABOUT IPFW
The Mastodons have been on a roll lately with five wins in a six game span. The streak began with a 57-55 home win over Oakland and a victory over Omaha pushed it to two games. South Dakota State held off IPFW 72-62, but the 'Dons have responded by winning three straight.

Amanda Hyde is just above her season scoring average in the last six games pouring in 19.8 per game. The trio of Erin Murphy, Haley Seibert and Stefanie Mauk have also picked up their scoring output allowing IPFW to go on the run. Defensively, IPFW is holding oppoents to just 56 points per game. The Mastodons have also taken care of the ball as they average 10 turnovers per game during the winning streak.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GRIZZLIES
Oakland lost the preseason player of the year to an injury and therefore can be found at the bottom of the Summit League standings. The team has lost six of their last seven games with the lone win coming vs. South Dakota on Feb. 14. Olivia Nash leads the team in scoring (11.8) and rebounding (8.2) as a freshman. Joining Nash with a double figure scoring total is Elena Popkey (11.2) who is also second on the team in assists (2.9).

Victoria Lipscomb is the floor general for the Golden Grizzlies. She is averaging 3.3 assists per contest which leads the team. Lipscomb recently scored a team-high 14 points vs Kansas City on Feb. 16. She hit a career-high four 3-pointers, three of which came in the first half.

More bad news was recently announced from the Head Coach at Oakland, Beckie Francis, as Zakiya Minifee will miss the remainder of the season due to a knee injury. Minifee was a preseason second team all-league selection at the beginning of the season.

ALL-TIME SERIES
IPFW trails Oakland in the all-time series 7-13. The first meeting between the two programs was played back during the 1985-86 season when the 'Dons played at Oakland in the season opener. Oakland won the game 80-73.

IPFW and Oakland split the season series a year ago with each team winning on the road. Oakland won 67-47 at the Gates Sports Center and IPFW returned the favor with a 52-45 win at the O'rena.

LAST TIME OUT
IPFW defeated South Dakota by the final score of 71-64. The Mastodons have now won three-straight games including five of their last six. Amanda Hyde once again led the team in scoring, but a total team effort pushed IPFW over the top. Hyde scored a game-high 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting. The junior was automatic from the free throw line hitting all seven of her attempts. Hyde also created opportunities for her teammates with four rebounds, four assists and a steal.

Stefanie Mauk, Rachel Mauk, and Erin Murphy also scored in double figures for IPFW. Both Mauk sisters hit three 3-point field goals. Rachel added three rebounds and three assists while Stefanie chipped in with four boards, a block and a steal.

IPFW once again limited their turnover total ending the game with nine. They were able to force South Dakota into 16 turnovers and therefore scored 19 points off Coyote miscues.

The game was exciting with 10 lead changes and seven ties. IPFW held a 36-28 lead at the half, but South Dakota quickly cut into the deficit and tied the game at 44-44. The game stayed close the rest of the way, but IPFW continued to come up with big plays which led to the win.

1,000 POINT WATCH
Amanda Hyde now has 925 career points as a Mastodon. She has put together a great season by doubling her points per game average from a year ago (19.0 2012-13 / 9.5 2011-12). Hyde is leading the Summit League in scoring which has not been done by an IPFW player since the 2007-08 season when Johnna Lewis-Carlisle averaged 19.5 ppg.

HYDE EARNS ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA SECOND TEAM HONORS
The Capital One Academic All-America Women's Basketball Division I second team is comprised of senior Caroline Durbin of New Mexico, senior Ashley Eide of South Dakota State, junior Sarah Hansen of Florida Gulf Coast, junior Amanda Hyde of IPFW, junior Rachel Tecca of Akron and junior Alli Williams of Saint Francis (Pa.).

The 2012-13 Capital One Academic All-America Division I Men's and Women's Basketball Teams, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) were announced on Thursday, Feb. 21.

Hyde holds a perfect 4.0 grade point average in mathematics teaching. She also leads the Summit League with a scoring average of 19.0.

IPFW VS OAKLAND GAME RECAP – JAN 17
Erin Murphy scored a layup with 17 seconds remaining to give IPFW a one point lead and the junior added a free throw after being fouled which led to IPFW knocking off Oakland 57-55 at the Gates Sports Center.

Murphy scored 11 points on Saturday afternoon, but none were bigger than the three-point play that sealed the win for IPFW. Amanda Hyde and Stefanie Mauk also reached a double-figure scoring total as Hyde led all players with 17 and Mauk hit two triples in the second half to end the game with 13.

Hyde shot 6-for-12 from the field and added two 3-point field goals with three free throws. She impacted the game in multiple ways adding five rebounds, four assists and a steal in 39 minutes of action.

Courtney Ogle was a spark off the bench for IPFW as she knocked down a 3-pointer, grabbed three rebounds and also recorded a career-high two blocks in 14 minutes.

One of the biggest shots of the day came from Hyde with less than a minute to play as she launched a 3-pointer from the top of the key with her team trailing by two. The shot was good and IPFW held on to win the game 57-55

SUMMIT LEAGUE LEADER
Junior Amanda Hyde leads the Summit League and is 29th in the nation with a scoring average of 19.0 points per game. She most recently scored 23 points vs. South Dakota.

THREE POINT SHOOTING
The Mastodons average just under seven 3-point field goals per game. That average is the second-best in the Summit League, and is 29th best in the NCAA. Western Illinois leads the Summit League with 7.5 made 3-point field goals per game, and Creighton is the top team in the country at 9.3.

FREEBIES
Amanda Hyde is shooting 86.1 percent from the free throw line this season making her the second best free throw shooter in the Summit League. The junior has made 124 of her 144 attempts on the season. She currently holds the 27th best percentage in the NCAA.

Hyde went 7-for-7 from the free throw line last week vs. South Dakota. She now has 254 career free throws which puts her at ninth all-time. She recently passed Stephanie Rosado who ended her career with 250. Hyde also holds the best career free throw percentage at .849.

IPFW is currently ranked fifth in the nation with a team free throw percentage of 78.3 Utah State leads the NCAA by knocking down 80.4 percent of their free throw attempts.

UP NEXT
The final road trip of the regular season is up next for the IPFW women's basketball team. The Mastodons will face Western Illinois on Thursday, Feb. 28 and end the year with a game at IUPUI on March 2.

~ Feel the Rumble ~

Purdue University Fort Wayne Athletics

Mastodons Head to Oakland for Saturday Showdown

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