Women's Basketball Weekly Release #19 - NCAA Tournament and WNIT Preview

March 13, 2007

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2007 Horizon League All-Tournament Team

Nicole Soulis, UW-Green Bay (MVP)
Senior * Forward * Green Bay, Wis.
Soulis picked up MVP honors at the 2007 Horizon League Women's Basketball Championship after winning Player of the Year accolades for the second-straight season earlier in the week. The six-foot-two forward averaged 14.7 points and 9.3 rebounds while shooting 66.7 percent from the floor as the Phoenix took home the championship. She saved her best for last with 21 points and a season-high 13 rebounds in the title game. Soulis has now earned a spot on the All-Tournament team three times in her career at UWGB.

Natalie Berglin, UW-Green Bay
Senior * Guard * Green Bay, Wis.
Berglin earned All-Tournament recognition for the first time in her career, averaging 13.3 points and four assist per contest in the loop summit. She drained seven-of-14 shots from long distance and committed just five turnovers in three outings.

Jackie Closser, Butler
Senior * Guard * Alexandria, Ind.
Closser placed on the All-Tournament squad after leading the Bulldogs with a 21 points-per-game average. She set a tournament record with 14 three-pointers in the team's three games and tied a tournament record with seven threes in the championship. The five-foot-five guard shot 46.2 percent (14-of-31) from long distance and 92.9 percent (13-of-14) from the charity stripe. In Butler's overtime victory in the semifinals, she poured in 11 of her 25 points in the extra session.

Traci Edwards, UW-Milwaukee
Sophomore * Center * Menasha, Wis.
In two tournament games, Edwards tallied an averaged of 23 points and 9.5 rebounds. She shot 87.5 percent (14-of-16) from the free-throw line and 50.0 percent (16-of-32) from the floor. The Menasha, Wis., native notched her 13th double-double of the season in the Panthers' overtime loss to Butler in the semifinals.

Amanda Popp, UW-Green Bay
Senior * Guard * Brillion, Wis.
Popp averaged a team-high 15.3 points to go along with 4.3 rebounds per game in the Horizon League Championship. She scored a career-best 22 points in the quarterfinals against Detroit and then had 18 points in the title-game victory over Butler.

NCAA Tournament Notes

#8 New Mexico Lobos (24-8) vs. #9 UW-Green Bay Phoenix (28-3)
- UW-Green Bay is No. 22 in this week's Associated Press top 25 poll. The Phoenix is 38-4 all-time as a nationally-ranked team.

- The Phoenix' 91-64 victory over Butler in the Horizon League Championship was the highest team scoring total and the largest margin of victory posted in any Division I title game.

- UW-Green Bay has won at least a share of the last nine Horizon League regular-season crowns. With this year's title, the Phoenix has won eight of the last 10 Horizon League Championships.

- UWGB is 1-7 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with its lone victory coming in 2003 against Washington (78-65). It marks the Horizon League's (formerly the Midwestern Collegiate Conference) only victory in the Big Dance.

- UW-Green Bay was one of only eight NCAA Division I teams that went undefeated in their respective conferences during 2006-07. Of those eight teams, only three took home postseason titles as Texas-Arlington (Southland), Middle Tennessee State (Sun Belt) and the Phoenix pulled off the feat.

- For the sixth time in nine seasons and the third straight year, the Horizon League Player of the Year hails from UW-Green Bay as senior forward Nicole Soulis became the first player in 17 seasons to earn back-to-back League Player of the Year honors. In her four-year career, Soulis has compiled 1,892 points, trailing only Chari Nordgaard for career points in program history. Head coach Kevin Borseth was named the League's Coach of the Year for the seventh time in nine seasons at the helm of the Phoenix. Senior guard Natalie Berglin earned First-Team All-League honors while junior guard Kayla Groh joined Soulis on the League's All-Defensive team.

- Senior Natalie Berglin boasts a League-best 2.88 assist/turnover ratio while ranking second on the Phoenix at 11.4 points per game. She is fifth in UW-Green Bay history with 416 career assists. Berglin became the 23rd player in school history to score 1,000 points on Jan. 9 against North Dakota State.

- UW-Green Bay is on the nation's second-longest winning streak at 25 games, setting a team record for consecutive victories. The Phoenix has also won 16-straight games at home. The team's run is the eighth time in nine years the Phoenix has won at least 10 straight contests. The Phoenix winning streak is second to Middle Tennessee State, which has won 26 straight.

- Just 10 teams are in the top 50 in the nation in all three shooting categories, including just five in the top 30, but UW-Green Bay is the only one in the top 10 in field-goal, free-throw and three-point shooting percentages. The Phoenix is first in the country with its .805 free-throw clip, while it is sixth in field goal percentage (.482) and sixth in three-point percentage (.389).

- With his team's win over UW-Milwaukee Jan. 13, head coach Kevin Borseth reached the 200-win plateau at UW-Green Bay. Borseth is 215-61 all-time at UW-Green Bay for an impressive .779 winning percentage.

WNIT Notes

UIC Flames (19-12) at Minnesota Golden Gophers (16-15)
- UIC makes its first appearance in a postseason tournament in school history. The Flames set program records with 19 wins and an 11-game winning streak during the 2006-07 campaign.

- The Flames have appeared in the last three semifinals of the Horizon League Championship, advancing to the championship game once (2006).

- The Flames and head coach Lisa Ryckbosch had a record-breaking afternoon against Loyola on Feb. 17. With a 72-63win over the Ramblers at home, the 2006-07 squad broke the school record by posting its tenth-consecutive victory. The streak began on Jan. 11 with a 77-64 victory over Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The previous record was set by the 1979-80 team. UIC added one more win to its streak, posting 11 straight-victories before a setback against UW-Milwaukee on March 1.

- Seniors LaShonda Grant and Jackie Parker along with freshman Jessie Miller were recognized by the Horizon League for their stellar performances on the court this season. Grant was named All-Horizon League First Team after averaging a team-best 15.7 points, 3.0 assists and 1.7 steals per game. After transferring to UIC two years ago, Parker has established herself as one of the best defensive weapons on the court. Named to the Horizon League All-Defensive Team, Parker averages 1.3 steals per game. Starting in 25 of 29 games for the Flames her rookie season, Miller was named to the Horizon League All-Newcomer Team. Averaging 9.0 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, Miller leads the squad at the free-throw line (.812).

- The Flames are 9-3 when they score more than 70 points in a game and 5-2 when scoring 80-plus points. UIC is 16-1 when leading at the half and 16-0 when leading with 5:00 left in regulation. The Flames are 12-2 when they out-rebound their opponents.

- Senior Krystal Hugelier was the 12th player in UIC history to reach 1,000 career points. Hugelier reached the milestone with ten points against Cleveland State on Jan. 4. Earlier in the season, senior LaShonda Grant became the 11th player in UIC history to score 1,000 career points, reaching the plateau against Central Michigan on Nov. 17. She now owns 1,443 career points.