Crusader men’s and women’s basketball builds momentum for NCCAA tourney
Posted by The Skyliner on February 18th, 2009Cory Guinn
Staff Writer
The Lady Crusaders came out firing on all cylinders on Feb. 9 in Hayes Gymnasium against King College. North Greenville hit 54 percent from the floor, including six three-pointers, en route to a 81-77 victory over the Tornados.
“We have been working on moving the ball and looking for the best shots possible, so that is basically what we did,” Nikki Wood, junior psychology, said. “Our defense also helped out our offense tons. If we play defense the offense will come, and that’s another plus in the game against King.”
Guard Karly Stache continued her hot shooting streak hitting five shots from downtown and scoring 21 points. Bridgett Smith, senior sports management, almost had the Lady Crusaders’ first triple-double of the season finishing with 12 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists. Christina Carlis, freshman undecided, chipped in 12 points and Mindy Greenstone, senior early childhood education, came off the bench to score 10 points. Wood scored nine points and dished out nine assists.
The North Greenville women followed up their hot shooting against King College with a poor shooting second half against Brevard College on Feb. 11 in Brevard, N.C. The Lady Tornados held NGU to just 33.3 percent shooting in the second half to come away with a 82-62 win over the Lady Crusaders.
NGU was led by center Amanda Milner, senior psychology, who dominated down low finishing with 11 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. Carlis scored 13 points and Whitney Smith, junior accounting, chipped in six points and seven rebounds.
Six North Greenville (13-13) players scored in double figures and Milner led the way with 21 points and eight rebounds as the Lady Crusaders routed Knoxville College 115-44 at Hayes Gym on Feb. 14.
Every player on the roster scored in the game for NGU. Wood finished with 20 points and seven steals while Whitney Smith scored 14 points, pulled down 14 rebounds, and handed out seven assists. Stache and Bridgett Smith scored 18 and 16 points respectively and Erin Gray, freshman undecided, came off the bench to score 12 points.
The North Greenville men played against one of the season’s toughest opponents on Feb. 9 when they took on Belmont Abbey in a clash of the Crusaders. Belmont Abbey took advantage of its size on the interior and used it to defeat North Greenville 82-65.
Kyler Vitko, junior sports management, played an unusual role and came off the bench to lead NGU with 16 points and seven rebounds. Zach Babbitt, sophomore business administration, scored 11 points in the came while Paul Harrison, freshman sports management, and Tyler Mains, sophomore accounting, both finished with nine points.
When the Crusaders traveled to Brevard, N.C. they were not expecting to run into a mass of Tornados. NGU was unable to slow down Brevard College inside, losing 74-56 in a game where North Greenville was unable to knock down shots.
“We didn’t play very well,” Head Coach Chad Lister said. “Going into the final few games of the season, we need to evaluate a few situations to see if we can get some momentum going into the NCCAA Regional Tournament.”
Vitko once again led the Crusader offense with 16 points, six rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Harrison finished the game with 11 points and seven rebounds while Tait Oliver, freshman sports management, scored nine points off the bench.
The Crusader men (9-15), led by Harrison’s 25 points and 15 rebounds, walloped Knoxville College 105-83 at Hayes Gymnasium on Feb. 14.
“We got a chance for everybody to get some quality minutes and no one had to play too many,” Lister said. “We finally broke out on offense and this win should give us a little moment as we head toward the post season.”
Three other Crusaders scored in double digits along with Harrison including Vitko who had 19 points and seven rebounds. Babbitt provided a spark off the bench scoring 15 points and Mains finished the game with 13 points and six assists. Zack Shields, freshman undecided, chipped in nine points and six rebounds while Kyler Booher, sophomore broadcast media, scored eight points off the bench.
The North Greenville women left Tigerville immediately after Saturday’s game bound for West Palm Beach, Fla. where the Lady Crusaders will play Emmanuel College Monday in the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Conference (NCCAA) South Regional Tournament. The North Greenville men will play two road games at Carver on Feb. 19 and Mars Hill on Feb. 21 before returning home to host Reinhardt on Monday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. in its final regular season contest before hosting the NCCAA Regional Tournament March 19-21 in Tigerville.