Women's Basketball Opens Season Against Denver
11/14/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Game 1: Air Force vs. Denver
Friday * Nov. 17 * 7 p.m. MST
SITE: Clune Arena (6,002)
Colorado Springs, Colo.
RADIO: None
NOTES: This game between Denver and Air Force renews a long-time rivalry which dates back to 1976 - the Falcons' Division II era ... Denver was picked to finish first in the Sun Belt.
RECORDS: This game marks the season opener for both teams.
COACHES:
Air Force is coached by Sue Darling (Arizona, 1983). This is Darling's third year as head coach of the Falcons. She has compiled a 9-45 record.
Denver is coached by Pam Tanner (Illinois State, 1989), who returns for her sixth season as head coach. She has an overall record of 72-63, and was named Sun Belt Coach of the Year last season.
SERIES: The two teams have met 45 times, with Denver leading the all-time series 24-21. The teams last met in 1998-99, when Denver defeated the Falcons 73-41. It was Air Force's worst loss ever to the Pioneers. The teams have a history of playing close games. Sixteen of the 45 games were decided by three points or less. Five games have gone into overtime, with Air Force winning four of those games. Half the Pioneers' wins were by six points or less, and eight of the Falcons wins were by three points or less.
Getting Started
The Falcons are starting their 25th season for women's basketball. The team spent 20 seasons at Divison II, before moving to Division I in 1996, when they joined the Western Athletic Conference. They moved to the Mountain West Conference last season.
Season Openers
The Falcons are 17-7 all-time in season openers. They are 10-4 at home and 7-3 on the road. They have not won a season opener since defeating Adams State 71-58 at home in 1995. Air Force opened against Denver in 1998, losing 73-41.
Scouting the Pioneers
In Denver's first season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference, the team went 16-11, including a 10-6 league mark to tie for third.
The Pioneers return four starters from last year's squad, include the team's top three scorers. Top returner is senior Michaela Pavlickova, who led the team in scoring (13.0), rebounding (8.9) and blocked shots (2.7) last year. Also returning are junior Melissa Garcia (10.5 ppg), and sophomore Ashley Atkinson (9.9 ppg). Garcia played point guard last season, leading the team with 87 assists in addition to her scoring output. Atkinson, who started 15 of 27 games as a freshman, led the team with 63 three-pointers. Junior Martha Dibella, a starter in 22 games last season, returns to the backcourt.
Denver's Probable Starters
# Name Pos Ht Yr5 Nikki Weddle G 5-4 Jr. 22 Melissa Garcia G 5-7 Jr. 35 Ashley Atkinson G 5-10 So. 43 Martha Dibella F 6-0 Jr. 45 Michaela Pavlickova C 6-3 Sr.
Looking Ahead
The Falcons will have little rest following Denver, as they immediately head to California to face Cal State Fullerton in the teams' first road game. Air Force will play Fullerton Sunday, Nov. 19, at 2 p.m. The team will then travel to Cedar City, Utah, to face Southern Utah on Tuesday, Nov. 21, at 7:35 p.m. Injury List
The Falcons have no players on the injury list. Samantha Clifton injured her right ankle in the team's exhibition game against Regis. Clifton was escorted from the court but returned to play in the second half.
Egregious Loss
The Falcons suffered a disappointing loss to Regis in their final exhibition game. The team fell to the Rangers 95-56. Regis, who has only defeated the Falcons nine times in 34 meetings, started the game with a 21-6 run. The Falcons could never recover from the early deficit. Air Force committed 26 turnovers in the loss and shot just 35 percent from the field. Regis finished the game with a .580 shooting percentage.
Regis belongs in the "They've Come A Long Way" category, as Air Force defeated the Rangers 110-22 in the teams' first-ever meeting in 1977. The bad news for Regis is the game was an exhibition and will not go in the record books.
Quoting Sue Darling
"I would describe the game as uninspired and undisciplined, and that's not Air Force basketball. Obviously we have a lot of adjustments to make."
Key to Success
The Falcons have shown they can play defense, as the team limited a Slovakian team who scored 100 points against UTEP to just 40 points in a 44-40 exhibition win.
However, the key to the Falcons success this season will be their scoring output. The team lost seniors Megan Thiedeman and Mollie Peters, who accounted for 65 percent of Air Force's scoring last season. The Falcons will look to returners Rozalyn Russ, Samantha Clifton and Morgan Bennett to increase their offensive production. The trio combined for 52 of the team's 100 points in the two exhibition games.
2000-01 Schedule Notes
The Falcons' schedule will be challenging the young group of players. In non-conference action, the Falcons face Southern Utah, North Texas, Nevada and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, teams which soundly defeated Air Force last season. They will face Denver, Baylor, Penn and Navy, schools with a history of having solid basketball programs. The Falcons also face Lafayette and Army on the road, teams which the Falcons defeated last season at home.
Falcons Picked Eighth
Air Force was picked to finish eighth in the conference by both the media and the coaches. Utah was picked to lead the conference again this year, with Colorado State in second.
Sister Sister
For the first time in 18 years, sisters will take the court on the same women's team. Sisters Sarah and Dorothy Albright will join each other on the court for the Falcons' varsity squad. Sarah, a junior, played on the varsity squad last season. Dorothy, a freshman, was expected to play junior varsity this season but was impressive in tryouts. The last sisters to play for the Falcons were Stacy and Martha Brodzik in 1982.
Extreme Connection
Falcons' starting forward and team captain Rozalyn Russ has connections with the eXtreme Football League. Her brother Steve Russ was selected by the Los Angeles Xtreme in the inaugural XFL draft. Steve played in the NFL for a number of years before Los Angeles made him their second pick overall.
Newcomers
Of the 13 players on the Falcons' roster, seven of them were not on the team last season. Ali Tomlinson, a junior, leads the group of newcomers. Tomlinson played for the Falcons as a freshman, but did not play last season. A starting point guard, Tomlinson brings speed and intensity to the team. Junior Brooke Bauer joins the squad after spending two seasons at junior varsity. She adds depth at the post position. The remaining five newcomers are all freshman. Janea Childress joins the team after spending a season at the Academy's prep school. Amoy Jackson, a guard, and Shawna Neff, a forward, are the Falcons' top recruits. They looked solid in the team's exhibition games. Kaitlin Mandelkow, Dorothy Albright and Melonie San Pietro round out the Falcons' freshman class. They should get solid minutes off the bench.
Two Sport Athlete
For the second year in a row, the Falcons have a two-sport athlete on their roster. Freshman Melonie San Pietro joins the squad after spending the fall playing on the Academy's soccer team. Last season, Morgan Bennett also played soccer, but chose to focus on basketball this year.
