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By VAN ROSE vrose@leader.net
Friday, March 14, 2003 Page: 1C
WILKES-BARRE – The King’s College Lady Monarchs are just one step away from
a return trip to the “great eight” of the NCAA Division III women’s
tournament.
They have the opportunity to reach that lofty plateau tonight, when they
host Eastern Connecticut University at 8 p.m. at Scandlon Gymnasium in
third-round action.
It’s part of a doubleheader that features Bowdoin (Maine) vs. Southern
Maine in the opener at 6 p.m. The winners will play tomorrow at Scandlon, with
a trip to the Final Four at stake.
To advance to Saturday’s game, the Lady Monarchs need to contain Eastern
Connecticut’s Allison Coleman, who King’s coach Bryan Whitten describes as one
of the top players in the country.
The 5-foot-9 Coleman, an All-American guard, averages 17 points, 12
rebounds and 5 1/2 assists per game.
“She does a lot for them,” Whitten said. “She’s probably to their team
what Joanne Polakoski did for our team in 2000. Allison rebounds well and
she’s a prolific scorer.
“Obviously, we need to contain her. It’s not a situation where we’re going
to shut her out, but we need to limit her effectiveness.”
Coleman poured in a game-high 26 points in Eastern Connecticut’s 65-62
victory against MAC power DeSales in second-round play Saturday.
“They’re a very good rebounding team,” Whitten said. “DeSales didn’t
shoot very well. Eastern Connecticut made a run, and DeSales had trouble
making shots.”
Eastern Connecticut (25-4) played man-to-man defense throughout the DeSales
game – something Whitten doesn’t expect to pose a problem for King’s (24-3).
The Lady Monarchs tore apart Pitt-Greensburg’s zone in Saturday’s 82-67
victory.
“We’re confident that we can run against man-to-man defense,” Whitten
said. “The other night we executed extremely well against a zone defense, so
we’re pretty confident.”
Whitten said Eastern Connecticut has two other outstanding players – senior
forward Morgan Perry and Deanne Prior. “They’re both 5-11 and run the floor
pretty well.”
King’s is led by 5-11 senior center Jen Wozniak, who scored 22 points
against Pitt-Greensburg. The Lady Monarchs also rely heavily on seniors
Carissa Ryan, Nikki Kingston, April Tanner and Katie Bowes.
“We’ve gotten great leadership from all five seniors,” Whitten said.
“They’ve been instrumental in us getting here. Our experience is showing and
it’s paying off.”
The Lady Monarchs also have a blue-chip player in junior guard Tiffini
Varrasse, who was named the Freedom League MVP. Varrasse is a deadly shooter
and superb ball handler.
“Tiffini can control a game, no matter what the other team is doing,”
Whitten said. “If she wants to make it a half-court game, she can.”
According to Whitten, King’s has been on a roll since the season began.
“There’s never been a point where we thought we’re not going to do what we
want to. We’ve played good, steady ball all year.”
The Bowdoin (25-2)-Southern Maine (26-3) matchup features two of the New
England traditional powers. Bowdoin beat Emanuel (Mass.) 75-50, and Southern
Maine defeated Salem State (Mass.) 72-54 to advance to the third round.
Bowdoin, ranked No. 5 nationally, is led by Laura Trenkle. The 5-9 junior
guard averages 14.4 points and 4.3 rebounds. Southern Maine is led by 5-9
freshman guard Tiffany Jones, who averages 18.7 points and 4.3 rebounds.
Whitten said he’s not familiar with either team, but plans to look at them
on film.
“We can’t think about Bowdoin or Southern Maine until we get by Eastern
Connecticut,” he said.
breakout box
Tonight’s schedule
(at Scandlon Gymnasium)
Bowdoin, Maine, vs. Southern Maine, 6 p.m.
King’s College vs. Eastern Connecticut, 8 p.m.