2004-2005 Midwest Conference Women's Basketball

Emmer earns one more honor from DIII News

MWC Player of the Year Janine Emmer, a junior forward from Ripon, was named to the DIII News All-American Honorable Mention Team recently. For a complete listing of the teams click here.

Emmer, Getzoff and Clerkin tabbed d3hoops.com All-Central Region

After leading her team to a near-perfect conference record, a league championship and a win in the NCAA Tournament, MWC Player of the Year Janine Emmer led a trio of conference cagers on the d3hoops.com All-Central Region Teams. Emmer was joined by Claire Getzoff of Lawrence on the first team while Lake Forest's Shannon Clerkin was a third-team selection. Votes are cast by sports information directors across the country.

Emmer, a junior forward, led the league champions in scoring and rebounding and was in the top ten in most all statistical categories in the MWC rankings. Getzoff, a sophomore guard from Evanston, Ill., earned all-region honors for the second straight year after gaining a spot on the third team as a freshman. Getzoff led the Midwest Conference in scoring and was a first-team all-league selection for the second straight year. Clerkin's impact was felt around the league as the junior center collected 11 double-doubles on the season while also leading the league in blocked shots per game.

For a complete listing of the All-Central Region team click here.

Ripon's Johnson earns post-season recognition

Russell Athletic and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) have recently selected Ripon Head Women's Basketball Coach Julie Johnson as the 2004 Region 7 Division III Coach of the Year. Johnson led her Red Hawks to a 15-1 mark in the Midwest Conference and 22-5 overall while claiming her second MWC title and finishing 1-1 in the NCAA Division III Tournament. (Ripon Sports Info)

3-9 Press Release

NCAA Division III Tournament

Second Round
UW-Stevens Point 84, Ripon 66

Ripon moves on to second round after rolling over Thunder

Red Hawk guard Joanie Hammer saved her career-best game for the national spotlight as the senior nailed all five of her three-pointers and finished with a game-high 19 points as Ripon downed visiting Wheaton 69-51 in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament. Hammer nailed four of her treys and scored 14 points in the first half as Ripon staked a 12-point lead at the break by shooting 57 percent from the field. MWC Player of the Year Janine Emmer scored 16 points and added five rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks. The Red Hawks, who out-rebounded the Thunder 41-26, will take to the road and visit the top-ranked team in the region, UW-Stevens Point. Ripon fell to the Pointers 78-53 in non-conference action at the beginning of the season.

2004 All-MWC Announced

2004 Midwest Conference Champion
Ripon College Red Hawks
(Click on picture for bigger view)

Red Hawks rebound their way to league title

With a solid performance on the glass Ripon hung on to win only their second conference championship in school history Saturday afternoon at the J.M. Storzer Physical Education Center by downing defending champion St. Norbert 66-55. The Red Hawks controlled the paint with a solid 44-23 rebounding advantage including 31 on the defensive end limiting second chance opportunities by the Green Knights. St. Norbert held the lead for the most of the first eight minutes of the contest until a Karalyn Dehn field goal with 11:45 remaining in the first half tied the game at 12-12. The Red Hawks went on a 10-0 run over the next four minutes and never trailed again. Forward Janine Emmer led the rebounding effort with 16 of her own to go with 12 points, four steals and three assists. Amanda Guay topped all Ripon scorers with 16 points. Kelly Krombach totaled 18 points and Abbey Johnson 14 for the Green Knights who finished 16-9 on the season.

Ripon also earned the MWC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament and will learn their opponent and site of competition on Sunday night. Click here to check the D3 Bracket when it is released late Sunday.

Ripon will take on defending champion St. Norbert after wins on Friday

Tournament host Ripon jumped out to a commanding 24-point halftime lead and withstood a late Grinnell rally to win 76-62 and setup a showdown with 2003 Champion St. Norbert Saturday in the Midwest Conference Championship game. The Red Hawks sprinted out of the gate with a 29-6 run over the first nine minutes and pushed the advantage to a game-high 26 points. Ripon pushed it to 26 points again with 9:02 remaining in the game before the Pioneers went on an amazing 23-4 run over the next seven minutes to cut the lead to seven. Six free-throws, including four by Joanie Hammer, and a jumper by Karalyn Dehn helped Ripon end the run. Ripon shot 66 percent in the torrid first half; 6-of-9 from the three-point line. Four Red Hawks scored 12 points or more with Amanda Guay logging 16 to lead the way. Grinnell's Acrivi Coromelas took top honors with 20 points as her Pioneers closed out their best season in over a decade.

Two Meggan Hau free throws and a missed shot at the buzzer by Lake Forest gave St. Norbert the 66-65 semi-final win in game one of the 2004 Championship Tournament. In a game that featured 14 ties and 11 lead changes the Foresters took a seven point lead, their biggest of the game, on a Sherry Wagner jumper with 6:43 remaining in the game. The defending champion Green Knights responded with an 11-3 run for the remainder of the game capped by the Hau charity shots. Abbey Johnson led the charge for St. Norbert with 10-of-16 shooting to finish with 21 points along with 12 rebounds. Kandyce Green notched 15 points for the Foresters while Shannon Clerkin added 14 points and ten boards. Lake Forest's bench outscored St. Norbert's 21-11, but the Green Knights collected 15 second chance points to the Foresters' eight.