STORMIN' PETREL HOOP NEWS

THE STORMIN’ PETREL NEWS BLOG IS UP AND RUNNIN’ AGAIN (JUST LIKE THE STORMY PETRELS)

2009-11-03T14:01:00.009-05:00

PRACTICE HAS FINALLY BEGUN...

And the 09/10 version of Stormy Petrel Basketball is taking shape and it will definitely be a different shape. As you probably know we graduated our starting six from last season, which is the bad news, but we have 12 new faces plus four returners and Senior Taymah Jones returns after two years of knee rehab. So where does that leave us? We are going to depend a lot on new faces for our success this season and I think we have the players to make it happen.

The four returning players are also young, with Chelsea MacDonald being the only Junior. Kelley Reeves, Jamie Maxie and Rena Crossland are all Sophomores.

Our new faces include four transfers from D-II schools: 5’9” power forward Junior Kristin Zipkin; 5’6” Sophomore point Morgan Loughrey; 5’7” Sophomore 'two' guard Katie Weeks; and 6’1” freshmen post Kaci Palmore.

The talented Freshmen class is a whopping 7: 5’8” play-maker and shooting guard Sarah Jones (Gilmer Co., Ga.); 6’2” post Sarah Giles (Kennesaw Mountain, Ga.); 5’9” power forward Mareva Bone ( Wheeler, Marietta, Ga.); 5’4” point guard Riley Cerone (Blessed Trinity, Roswell, Ga.); 5’6” shooting guard Katie Lynn (Buford, Buford, Ga.); 5’6” point guard Morghan Brandon (Von Steuben, Chicago, Il.); and 5’5” shooting guard Megan Miles ( White Station, Cordova, Tn.).

So this year we have point guards and posts to go along with our great supply of shooters. With all the new faces it is going to be very interesting to see how fast we can come together as a team.

SEASON OPENER – A SPECIAL NIGHT...

Opening night will be:

November 17, 7 p.m. at home against Emory

Prior to the tip we are going to hang our Sweet Sixteen Banner, honor last year’s graduating class and retire the jerseys of our two All Americans Katie Kulavic and Anna Findley from that class. And then you will be treated to some fine bball as we play Emory who upset us last season.

Come early to help us honor this great group of graduates who gave so much to Oglethorpe and really thrust the Petrels into national prominence.

WHAT ARE THEY DOING NOW?

Katie Kulavic: New asst. coach at Berry College, Rome, Ga. under new head coach Stephanie Dunn who coached Katie at St. Pius X H.S.

Anna Findley: Executive assistant at the Muntzing-Sattele Company in Atlanta.

Biz Richmann: Asst. Coach at OU and also attending Graduate School at Georgia State University.

Jamie Osmanson: Events manager at Windermere Country Club, Duluth, Ga.

Hannah Brooks: Veterinary assistant while waiting to begin Vet School.

Tina Grace: Back in Pensacola working with a physiologist (can you imagine that!)

(and apparently they're poised to fight villains too?)

WHAT ELSE IS NEW THIS SEASON?

As I mentioned above Biz Richmann (’09) joins our coaching staff along with returning asst. coach Fallon Rehmert. Together they provide an excellent team to help our athletes on and off the court. Both had stellar careers in college, both in the classroom (each had 3.75 GPA’s) and on the court. Just can’t tell you how excited I am to work with these assistants!

And we welcome them to the blog-o-sphere as they will both be contributing tidbits to the Stormin' Petrel Hoop News. Stay tuned...

GAME BROADCASTS

Our home games will again be webcast on the Petrel Sports Network. Go to our webpage for directions on how to listen to our home games and the Coach’s Show (available via iTunes podcast - search "oglethorpe university") on your computer.

SCHEDULE HIGHLIGHTS

As usual, the SCAC will be difficult. DePauw and Centre have been getting most of the press in the East, and Trinity in the West. BSC brought in a slew of new players and I hear Matt Dean at Rhodes has loaded up.

Our out-of-conference schedule will be extremely challenging with National power Hope coming to our Holiday Tournament (stay tuned for some awesome tourney t-shirts again)! We also travel to Thomas More for their Thanksgiving Tournament... and you know they want revenge after we beat them twice. We also play Manchester, from Indiana in the tournament. Emory is always difficult for us, as well as Piedmont. We have added Agnes Scott and East Texas Baptist from the very competitive American Southwest Conference. Last year’s NCAA opponent, Maryville, comes to town, as does LaGrange College.

TIDBITS

’05 Grads Julie Colantoni and Katie Michalezyk now have "MD" after their names. Congrats!

We will have one additional ball girl this season: Madelyn Bickel, formally a west-coaster, now living in Hotlanta.

My daughter, Gerri DiCarlo, will be helping us keep up with the Stormin’ Petrel Blog again, in between working her graphic + web design and photography business, Art Elastic, and being a Stormy Petrel super fan (she's the one who stands up most of the game and loses her voice).

If you would like to contribute a tidbit or anecdote... please feel free to contact her at GerriDiCarlo [at] gmail.com

IT'S OVER... BUT IS IT???

2009-03-16T06:55:00.008-04:00

THE TOURNAMENT SEASON

Our season came to an end in the Sweet Sixteen round of the NCAA Big Dance. After winning memorable first and second round games at Dorough Fieldhouse, we traveled to Crestview Hills, Ky. and lost to George Fox University from Oregon. We fell behind and were losing by 8 at the half but pulled even at 44, seven minutes into the second half.

But the Bruins pulled one of our tricks on us and ran off 18 straight points. We made another run but had to foul in the end to have a chance, but GF made their shots and went on to the victory.

GF won the next day against Hope and they move on to the Final Four this weekend.

This game marked the end of our SUPER SENIORS' careers at OU and what a mark they left: W/L record of 96-26, 44-12 in the SCAC, 4 straight appearances in the NCAA National Tournament, 1 Sweet Sixteen, 1 Final Four, SCAC regular season champion plus this year's conference tournament champion.

To try and put this into perspective, so far we have not found a college team ever that a single class produce five players with 500+ rebounds each and four players scoring over 1,000 points each. Do you think this group has made a statement for the Petrel Nation?

I have been trying to give this group a tricky handle (like the Michigan Fab Five) for a couple of years now, but to no avail.

How about some suggestions from the Petrel Nation?

THE NCAA TOURNAMENT COMES TO DOROUGH FIELDHOUSE

For the first time ever, OU hosted the first two rounds of the NCAA D-III Women's Basketball Tournament. The first round games were Greensboro College vs Mississippi College followed by OU vs Maryville College. Spiffed-up Dorough looked great thanks to the efforts of the OU faithful and the standing room only crowd was treated to some exciting basketball. Our game was extremely exciting coming down to a last minute 3 point shot by Anna Findley to win the game. The next night the Stormy Petrels were hitting on all cylinders, especially on the defensive side, and ran away from the Greensboro Pride 67-40. To see and feel the atmosphere in Dorough will be long remembered by all in attendance.

INDIVIDUAL HONORS

Over the past four years, our players have received many individual honors (both on and off the court) and they continue to mount. The awards have been well-documented here on the Stormin' Petrel Hoop News (peruse the archives and marvel at the accomplishments of these young ladies if you haven't already), D3 Hoops, The Atlanta Journal Constitution (thx to Mr. Hummer), community newspapers like The Dunwoody Crier, the SCAC site, the Oglethorpe Athletics webpage, and so on. But these players have always considered our success a team effort. Therefore, in this closing chapter of the season, I am not going to list the LONG list of individual honors but just say "job very well done" to a group of superior individuals that came together to form an outstanding TEAM.

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE

We will always miss our Seniors but we must now look to the future. Instead of the #1 bullseye on the Stormy Petrel's back, we'll now be wearing the revenge bullseye on our back. Let me say right now, we will be ready with our group of excellent returning players, plus an exceptional group of incoming players. I doubt if we will go into next season with lofty pre-season rankings, but just wait until March rolls around and let's see what happens.

WE ARE NOT REBUILDING. WE ARE RELOADING!

THX TO ALL (AND THE LIST IS LOOOOOOONG)...

AS YOU ALL ARE IMPORTANT TO OUR GREAT SUCCESS!

That's All Folks!

2009-03-13T23:23:00.003-04:00

At this time I'd like to cross sports and quote a baseball favorite, Bull Durham.

The wise Crash says: "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains."

Pertaining to the Petrels tonight... IT RAINED!

We were sad and there were tears.

We didn't win.

But by no means can I say we're walking away from this season with a loss.

The four EXTRAORDINARY years that came from this Senior class will always be a WIN in my book.

Night night.

GO PETRELS!!!

TUNE IN TO THE SWEET 16!

2009-03-12T17:28:00.005-04:00

Step 1: Click here to listen to Oglethorpe's own Hoyt Young call the game.

Step 2: Click here to watch streaming video while you listen to Hoyt.

Step 3: Cheer repeatedly "GO PETRELS"!

AJC: "Once-in-a-Lifetime Class"

2009-03-12T17:14:00.005-04:00

(click to view larger)

Here's an article from today's Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Another Day, Another Honor!

2009-03-10T14:34:00.005-04:00

Katie Kulavic has made the Russell Athletic/WBCA (Women's Basketball Coaches Association) First Team All-Region (there are eight regions total)!

Aside from the immediate honor, Katie is also in the running for the Russell Athletic/WBCA First Team ALL-AMERICAN to be awarded at the end of the season!

Coach Sattele has been awarded the Coach of the Year for our Region (there are eight regions total)!

With this award, he is also in the running for Coach of the YEAR to be awarded at the end of the season!

If you'd like to check out the full list of honored athletes and coaches, here are some links:

Athletes by Region

Coaches by Region

Atlanta Tipoff Club Player & Coach of the Year!

2009-03-09T15:10:00.006-04:00

Katie Kulavic has been named

Georgia Women’s College Player of the Year

for all levels by the Atlanta Tipoff Club!!!

Coach Sattele has been named

Whack Hyder Georgia Women’s College Coach of the Year

for all levels by the Atlanta Tipoff Club!!!

These are huge honors that will be celebrated at this year's

Naismith Awards on March 23rd!

And of course, humble Katie's reaction when Coach gave her the news...

a quiet "wow".

CONGRATULATIONS KATIE AND COACH SATTELE!!!

Coach Sattele on Hoopsville last night

2009-03-09T15:03:00.003-04:00

In case you missed the live broadcast, here's a link to hear Coach Sattele on D3Hoops weekly Internet/radio broadcast "Hoopsville":

Hoopsville Broadcast

He's one of the last two guests if you want to skip ahead.

Ain't it Sweet?

2009-03-09T14:13:00.004-04:00

Well, the Stormy Petrels have done it again and we're off to Kentucky to play undefeated George Fox (#3 Nationally) at Thomas More this Friday. If you'll notice, the foursome from the "bracket of death" playing in Kentucky this weekend are #'s 2, 3, 5, and 7 in the National Rankings! Yikes!

In addition to their undefeated season, George Fox, from Portland, OR, boasts a 6'4" post player and has held their opponents to under 60 points per game.

But we've got THE SUPER SENIORS who are looking to give it their all this

Friday the 13th!

Stay tuned for more details about this weekend's matchup from Coach...

It's difficult to keep Up with all these records!

2009-03-09T14:06:00.003-04:00

(to view any article larger, simply click on it)

For all the Petrel Fans out there who are having a hard time keeping up with all the honors and record-breaking (myself included), here are a few articles from the SCAC you may have missed. But try to keep up, because the season ain't over just yet...

SCAC Champs' Interviews

2009-03-09T13:34:00.012-04:00

Compliments of the SCACSports blog, here are the post-game interviews with the starting five and with Coach Sattele:

To hear Anna Findley, 1st Team All SCAC player,

plus All-Tournament Team member

(for a record 4 years straight),

click here.

To hear Hannah Brooks, SCAC Defensive Player of the Year,

click here.

To heart Biz Richamann, Honorable Mention

SCAC Team of the Year,

click here.

To hear Katie Kulavic, 1st Team All SCAC player,

All-Tournament Member, and current leading scoring in

SCAC history for both Men and Women,

click here.

To hear Tina Grace, MVP of this year's SCAC Tournament,

click here.

D3Hoops Has Put a Bull's Eye on the Petrels!

2009-03-04T21:55:00.002-05:00

Check out D3Hoops... Pat Coleman has put the bull's eye on the Petrels.

Starting Friday, we will try to exceed his expectations.

TROPHY IN HANDS

2009-03-02T18:32:00.002-05:00

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

SUPER SENIORS

A MOTELY CREW

THE SCAC CHAMPIONS!!!

(Images courtesy of Chelsea's Dad)

March Madness is Coming to OU!

2009-03-02T12:11:00.002-05:00

For the first time ever, Oglethorpe University will host the first round of the NCAA Tournament! We play Maryville (Tennessee) Friday at 8 on our home court.

Take a closer look at the bracket here.

If you'll notice, our region is stacked with three of the Final Four teams from last season, plus an undefeated George Fox.

We've got our work set out for us, so...

COME SUPPORT THE PETRELS!

Making History: SCAC CHAMPIONS!!!

2009-03-01T14:33:00.006-05:00

This is an un-official post from the Coach's too-excited daughter, but I'm sure Dad will have more detail to write later. For now here's some exciting news:

Oglethorpe has won their first SCAC Championship,

beating the tenacious Trinity Tigers 82 to 66 this afternoon in Conway, Arkansas.

Yesterday Trinity pounded DePauw (98 to 80).

And if you'll recall, Trinity had our number a few weeks ago when our shooting percentage dipped to unmentionable lows.

But we came out ready to play today and never looked back on a lead that we earned just four and a half minutes into the game.

_________________________________________

The Petrels played great all weekend beating Millsaps Friday 70-56, then Centre yesterday 71-51. Unfortunately I don't have the stats in front of me, but both games were amazing team efforts with some great performances from ALL our Seniors in their last SCAC showings, including some very important minutes from Jamie Osmanson and Carisa Mitchell.

The starters put on a clinic this afternoon, with stifling defense and shooting 59% from the field and over 50% from beyond the arc nailing 8 of 15...

Katie Kulavic (with 24 pts today) made the SCAC All-Tournament Team AND now holds the title of Oglethorpe Basketball's ALL-TIME Leading Scorer for the MEN & WOMEN'S PROGRAMS! Plus she made the First Team SCAC for the Year.

Anna Findley (with 27 pts today including FIVE 3-pointers) made the SCAC All-Tournament Team for her FOURTH CONSECUTIVE year (never before accomplished in the Men's or Women's Programs)! She also made the First Team SCAC for the Year.

Tina Grace (who had a tremendous weekend with 21 points in both games Friday and Saturday and 18 pts and 10 rebounds today), made the SCAC All-Tournament Team with an SCAC Tournament MVP performance.

Biz Richmann racked-up FIFTEEN rebounds against some super strong Trinity players, plus she had five assists today! In addition, she made Honorable Mention for SCAC Team of the Year.

Hannah Brooks nailed a rockin' 3-pointer and had six assists and five rebounds, with her usual defensive stronghold throughout 39 minutes of play this afternoon!

_________________________________________

Today is March 1st and the MADNESS has officially begun!

Tomorrow morning the NCAA will announce the tournament schedule and Oglethorpe is guaranteed a bid with their SCAC victory today!

But the big news will come when we hear whether our game next weekend

will be played at home!

CONGRATULATIONS PETRELS!!!

Stay tuned...

IT'S TOURNAMENT TIME...

2009-02-25T13:38:00.005-05:00

SEASON RECORD: 22-3, 12-2 IN CONFERENCE

NATIONAL RANKING: #10, D3 HOOPS

Let's first talk about this season's body of work:

Our best record and most wins - 22-3

Most Conference wins - 12

Top seed in the Conference Tournament

First undefeated season at home - 14-0

Beat 4 Nationally Ranked teams in a row (in just 24 days) in December

Ranked in the Top 10 Nationally all season - as high as #2

All 5 Senior starters join the 500+ rebound club

Four Seniors join the 1000+ points in a career club

We're checking to see if the above has ever been accomplished by a single class

Many individual records: Kulavic - All time SCAC scoring and made shots, Findley -most career 3-pointers made

Richmann, Grace, Kulavic and Findley either Player of the Week or made Team of the Week multiple times.

AND WE'RE NOT DONE YET!

This weekend we travel to Conway, Ar. for the SCAC Conference Tournament as the #1 seedafter narrowly beating Centre at Centre 79-75. Great game from start to finish - close all the way. During the game, Katie Kulavic became the All Time Leading Scorer in the SCAC, pushing her point total to 1,850 points. Katie scored 33 in the game going 14-17 from the field. Tina Grace poured in 19 and Anna Findley chipped in with 18, but the real story was how hard they all played knowing how much the game meant for conference tournament seeding. If we had lost the game we would go in as a third seed with a very difficult path to a Conference Championship, but if we won we would earn the top seed and the path becomes a little easier.

Last Friday we took our 3rd loss of the season at DePauw 92-86. We went down by 22 midway through the second half and were down 19 with 4:55 to go, but then we went on one of our patented scoring binges and scored 15 straight to pull within 4 with 1:40 to go. We got to 88-84 but no closer. They made their free throws down the stretch to hold on. Anna Findley just carried us for the majority of the game scoring 30 from all over the court. Tina Grace took it inside and scored 19,while Kulavic hit for 14 (12 in the second half) and Biz Richmann tallied10.

Our defensive stopper Hannah Brooks got into early foul trouble and in stepped Senior Jamie Osmanson who played great. As a matter of fact, Jamie gave us valuable minutes in bothgames last weekend, playing extremely aggressive on both ends of the court. We will definitely need her this weekend with the potential of playing 3 games in 3 days. In fact, we will need all available hands on deck with the potential of 3 games in 3 days!

TIDBITS

Injury Report:

Ari Brown - hyper-extended a knee, should be ready to go!

Kelley Reeves - aggravated an old ankle injury, out for the remainder of the season, surgery next Monday, 3-5 month recovery. She will be missed.

Regie Howell - still in the boot with foot injury, her return is doubtful.

Tina Grace - Quad pull, "not to worry", 19 pts per game last weekend

Katie Kulavic - Calf pull, "where's my calf?" 33 points Sunday

Hannah Brooks - hip pain, "what hip pain" as she says

Anna Findley - old ankle sprain and tight leg mustles, "how did I miss that last shot", 30 against DePauw

Biz Richmann - the knees of a 40 year old, "I'm just going to wear ice packs during the game",15 rebounds last weekend

The rest of the team... NOT TO WORRY, THEY WILL ANSWER THE HORN!!!!!!!!!!!

SCAC TOURNAMENT

Complete schedule available here on the SCAC website

Anyway, we play at 6pm on Friday, and 3pm on Saturday, 12pm on Sunday if we keep winning. This is Central time - 1 hour later Eastern time. Games will be broadcast on the Stormy Petrel Network and I think webcast for $$. Live Stats will also be available.

NCAA TOURNAMENT

Bids will be announced Monday morning around 10am, March 2 on www.ncaa.org

If we can win the SCAC Tournament we have a good chance of hosting the first two rounds of the tournament!

Katie Kulavic: SCAC Player of the Week

2009-02-25T13:32:00.001-05:00

(click image to view larger)

Pictures From the Rhodes Game

2009-02-24T14:17:00.000-05:00

Seniors Perform & Perfect Season on the Home Court

2009-02-18T09:41:00.005-05:00

We had a great weekend of bball and special events to close out

an UNDEFEATED Home Season (14-0).

Special thx to Game Ops staff led by Coach Gio and JUDD.

Bested Rhodes 77-63 Friday evening and Katie Kulavic broke the Women's All-time Scoring Record. The previous record holder, Heather Francoeur Karvis, was on hand to present Katie with the game ball.

On Senior day, our Seniors made a special farewell by scoring 24 points in 5 minutes to open the second half and went on to a 83-58 win over Birmingham Southern.

Biz Richmann became the 4th senior on the squad to break into the 1,000 pt. club.

We also have 4 seniors in the 500 rebound club and

Tina Grace is fast approaching this milestone.

It is going to be hard to find, at any level, a single class that has produced four 1,000 point producers. Now add in five 500 rebounders as well? It may never have been accomplished prior to this team. We're checking... (Mr. Grace get to work!)

We are now 21-2, #4 in the country.

We'll finish the season on the road at DePauw Friday at 8 pm (WGRE, DePauw's school radio station will be broadcasting the game, go to their website for details) and

Centre on Sunday at 3 pm.

THEN IT'S TOURNAMENT TIME...

Petrel Picassos at Starbucks

2009-02-17T20:23:00.032-05:00

(1) Katie Kulavic

(2) Hannah Brooks

(3) Jamie Osmanson

(4) Anna Findley

(5) Hannah Brooks

(6) Hannah Brooks

(7) Jamie Osmanson

(8) Katie Kulavic

(9) Tina Grace

(10) Anna Findley

(11) Katie Kulavic

(12) Hannah Brooks

(13) Tina Grace

(14) Anna Findley

.....:::::::|||||||||||||||||:::::.....

WHO KNEW THESE GIRLS WERE SO MULTI-TALENTED!?!

Five Senior Petrels took a drawing class and their work is

on display at the Starbucks near Blackburn Park right now!

The artists are:

Tina Grace

Katie Kulavic

Jamie Osmanson

Hannah Brooks

Anna Findley

(to view any image larger, click on it)

The first few images are still life drawings done in charcoal on paper.

The artists studied the relationship of various objects to one another including their size, shape and texture; as well as depicting varying highlights and shadows.

The rest of the images are contour drawings that are very expressive and full of personality!

A few of these are self portraits where the artist looked at a mirror and NOT at their paper. Their eyes must find the lines that outline their face in the mirror...

while their trusting hand (holding a pen to the paper) tries to record this same path without looking at the paper.

Often, the artist kept the pen to the paper without picking it up to move to another area or feature.

Feel free to post COMMENTS about these wonderful masterpieces!

Simply click on the yellow "Comments" link

just below this post,

and don't forget to include your name!

"The Katie"

2009-02-13T12:27:00.000-05:00

A great image of Katie Kulavic in action!

THIS IS IT!!!

2009-02-11T06:03:00.008-05:00

THE FINAL HOME GAMES...

YOUR LAST CHANCE TO SEE THE SUPER SENIORS AT HOME

AND THANK A GROUP OF YOUNG & TALENTED WOMEN FOR

FOUR SEASONS OF AMAZING BBALL

Friday, February 13 at 8 pm, the Stormy Petrels take the court against Rhodes College. Through the efforts of our Sports Information Director, Hoyt Young, the game will be televised via webcasting. To see the game on your computer go to the following link:

http://scoreatl.playonsports.com/?eventId=5280.

Playonsports will televise both the men's game, at 6, and our game at 8. This is a first at OU and, if received well, could be more something we'll see in the future! This is also Homecoming and basketball blackout. Wear your black!

Sunday is Senior Day, and our last scheduled home game at 3pm. We will honor a group of seniors that have brought to Stormy Petrel fans across the country (and Italy also) unparalleled basketball excitement. This surviving group of 6 four year players has generated a list of team and individual accomplishments that has set the standard for excellence both on and off the court: high GPS's, community service, campus leadership, and yes they sure can play BBALL also.

COME TO OLE' DOROUGH FIELDHOUSE

SUNDAY AFTERNOON AND BE A PART OF THE CELEBRATION!

THE RECORD

19-2, 10-1 SCAC

#5 USA TODAY/ESPN, #6 D3 HOOPS

Last week we traveled to Sewanee to play the ever-improving Tigers and they gave us all we could handle. Still playing without Tina Grace (leg muscle tear), and then Katie Kulavic comes up with a tight calf muscle in the first half, and we found ourselves down at the half by 5. But, as this amazing team can do, they find another level and kick it up a gear and we finish with a 70-62 'W'.

With the injuries, we are getting extended quality play from our bench. February games are the true test of where a team stands. The first test is how the bench steps up or not. And our bench is stepping it up. In the last few games, we have been going deep into our bench and they have truly responded. As an example, Ari Brown has come in and given us valuable inside help while Tina recovers. Chelsea MacDonald has been popping the 3's to bolster our outside game. We will need this to continue as we enter the final push and press toward our 4th straight NCAA Big Dance invitation. We all know this is a team of 14 players, and what you fans don't see is what goes on at practice and the contributions of all the players make for the success of the team. The starters get the headlines, but team is where it's at.

COME SUPPORT THE TEAM THIS WEEKEND...

HAPPENINGS

So far, we already have 3 commitments for next season and we have an excellent pool of very interested prospects to round out a great team. But first things first...

COME CHEER ON OUR FANTASTIC SENIORS THIS WEEKEND.

SUPER SENIORS' LAST HOME GAMES

2009-02-09T11:27:00.005-05:00

Come support our SUPER Seniors

this weekend as they play their last two home games

vs. Rhodes at 8pm on Friday (the 13th),

and Birmingham-Southern at 3pm on Sunday.

LIVE VIDEO FROM TEXAS ON FRIDAY

2009-01-22T10:19:00.007-05:00

WE'RE OFF TO TEXAS FOR AN IMPORTANT 2 GAME WEEKEND AGAINST SOUTHWESTERN AND TRINITY.

FRIDAY'S GAME IS VIDEO CAST. CHECK OUT THE SOUTHWESTERN WEBSITE FOR DETAILS. SUNDAY'S GAME IS AVAILABLE ON LIVE STATS.

WE JUST KEEP ROLLING ALONG...

2009-01-20T06:48:00.011-05:00

BUT LET'S NOT TAKE IT FOR GRANTED

The Stormy Petrels are now 15-1, ranked #5 in the country with a trip to Texas coming up this weekend.

In the past couple of weeks, I have noticed a considerable change in the team and it really showed last weekend against 2 conference opponents. The first is the level of team defense and the second is the bench play.

Most teams usually start the season with the defense ahead of the offense. I personally attribute this to the fact that most teams run a series of set-play offenses that take a few games for the players to learn. As you know, if you follow Stormy Petrel basketball, that is not the case with us. Our defense is more complicated than our offense and each year's team is a little different as far as our 'defensive mentality'. Because of these differences year to year, we try to tweek it toward the specific players. Currently our team is coming into it's own on the "D" side of the game.

As for the bench play... this past weekend we made a HUGE jump. The playing minutes were equally divided between the starters and the bench crew as were points scored, and in the Millsaps game the bench was able to extend the lead.

This can only help as the season continues on and helps for next season also.

THE BENCH CREW

JAMIE OSMANSON, SR. - 4 YEAR PLAYER, tall with long arms who can shoot the three and guard the opponents 3 pt. shooter.

REGI HOWELL, SO. - Our only true post at 6'2 who just loves to block shots with attitude.

CHELSEA MACDONALD, SO. - "Quick release CMAC", as I call her, and now she's playing "D"

ARI BROWN, SO. - Quickly becoming 'tenacious', rather like another player we have on the starting 5.

KELLEY REEVES, SO - Our first year transfer who just plays hard everyday and that includes every practice. Please shoot the ball!

RENA CROSSLAND, FR. - Just a relentless buzz on defense. Another Brittany C. in-training.

CARISA MITCHELL, SR. - Senior transfer who is as quick as anyone on the court and is now using that speed.

JAMIE MAXIE, FR. - Just transferred in from Dawgville this semester. When she gets her legs back... she can shoot the 3.

MORE ABOUT DEFENSE

Many accolades are received on offensive accomplishments, and deservedly so. Offensive stats are easy to follow in the boxscore and that is how you change the numbers on the scoreboard. But if you really follow the game, defense is where it's at. I have the luxury to be able to watch our game tapes over and over (and over) and really see the untold side of the game: hard-nosed defense relentlessly pressuring the opponent's best players. We try to take away what the opponents do best, and that is usually accomplihed with solid defense.

All 5 of our starting 5 play good defense, but HANNAH BROOKS, at the forward position, and BIZ RICHMANN, at the post, are exceptional when to comes to playing position "D". Both are usually giving up size (sometimes 3-5 inches - and many pounds) but both are as tough and relentless as they come. Next time you have an opportunity to attend one of our games just check out how hard they are working. Remember, 80% of the game is played away from the ball and this is where Brooks and Richmann excel.

OFF TO TEXAS...

Tina Grace Named SCAC Player of the Week

2009-01-04T15:45:00.002-05:00

Here's what SCAC Sports had to say:

TINA GRACE, OGLETHORPE UNIVERSITY, WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

TINA GRACE OF OGLETHORPE UNIVERSITY, a senior forward from Pensacola, Fla., has been named SCAC Basketball Player-of-the-Week for games played Monday, December 15th thru Sunday, December 21st.

Grace led the Petrels to their fourth consecutive win, and a 2-0 weekend as Oglethorpe hosted the Stormy Petrel Holiday Classic. For the Tournament Grace averaged 17 points, 5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3 steals in wins over St. Norberts (Wis.) College and Transylvania (Ky.) University.

On the season, Grace stands in the top ten in the conference in a number of statistical categories including points (10th), assists (10th) and steals (2nd) per contest. The Petrels will return to action after the New Year when they travel to Rhodes on January 2nd.

Anna Findley on National Team of the Week

2009-01-04T14:21:00.003-05:00

(Click here to go to D3 Hoops)

D3 Hoops Notables

2009-01-04T14:03:00.003-05:00

(Click here to go to D3 Hoops)

PETRELS IN ACTION

2008-12-22T14:01:00.029-05:00

A few images of Petrels Holiday Action...

SCHEDULE CHANGE!

2008-12-18T14:51:00.002-05:00

Please note the schedule changes for this weekend's STORMY PETREL CLASSIC!

Friday, December 19th @ 6pm:

Oglethorpe vs. St. Norbert

Sunday, December 21st @ 2pm:

Oglethorpe vs. Transylvania

2008-12-17T09:12:00.001-05:00

6-1 Overall; 2-0 Conference

2008-12-15T10:19:00.009-05:00

D3 HOOPS #11, USA/ESPN #9

CAME UP A LITTLE SHORT ACROSS TOWN...

BUT REBOUNDED TO DEFEAT OUR CONFERENCE NEMESIS

EMORY 85

OGLETHORPE 84

Plain and simple, we were out-played by an Emory team that came prepared and played hard for 40 minutes. We fell behind early but came back to take a 1 point lead at the half. We opened up a 7-point lead in the second and had an opportunity to widen the gap, but the Eagles just kept coming back and they opened a four point lead with 7 seconds to go. Following a 3 pointer by Katie Kulavic with 1.4 seconds to go, the Stormy Petrels stole the inbounds pass and called a timeout with .5 to go.

Katie broke loose heading toward the basket and Hannah Brooks made a perfect pass but Katie’s off balance shot just rimmed off and the Stormy Petrels suffered their first defeat of the season. Anna Findley led the charge with 23 pts., Biz Richmann chipped in with 16 pts. and defensive specialist Hannah Brooks continues to help on the offensive end with 10 pts. Findley set a new school record for career steals. She now has 248. Brooks and Richmann both surpassed 500 career rebounds.

DEPAUW 81

OGLETHORPE 84

This was a great women’s college basketball game! Two very good teams going at it for 40 minutes. This game would determine which team gets the season’s edge in conference play. DePauw was pre-season #3 Nationally, but suffered two early defeats. We all knew Coach Huffman would have her team ready to play as DePauw jumped out to a 10 point lead, but OU reqrouped and trailed at the half by 3. The Tigers had four players scoring in double figures but the Petrels countered with four also led by Katie Kulavic with 20 pts, 4, asst. and 5 reb. "Tenacious" Tina Grace returned to form, knocking down 19, followed closely by Biz Richmann with 17. But the difference maker was first year player Kelley Reeves who came off the bench scoring 14 on 3-4 from 3 pt. range, and then stepping to the charity stripe to drain 4-4 at a crucial juncture in the game. By the way, Kulavic never left the game and again proved why she is one of the best all round players in the country.

CENTRE 67

OGLETHORPE 83

Sunday conference games are always difficult and this game was no exception. Centre has improved every year and this years’s addition is an excellent freshmen group and Coach Robinson will definitely have them ready for conference play after the Holiday break. Again, we fell behind by 10 and again we rallied to take an 8 point lead at the half. Our starting senior five just find a way to elevate their game. We were able to open an 18 pt. lead midway through the second half, but Centre made another run and cut the lead to under 10. But a 7-0 spurt sealed the 'W'. Anna Findley led the way with 19 pts. and 6 asst. Three players followed with 12 each: Kulavic, Grace and again Brooks who also had 9 reb.

What was important about this game was our bench contribution. It is imperative to the success of this year’s team that we lengthen our bench. We were able to substitute at crucial times in the game and our bench responded with solid minutes.

HOLIDAY CLASSIC

DECEMBER 19, 20 AND NOW 21,

SCHEDULE CHANGE

LaGrange College notified us last Wednesday, December 12 that they will not be able to attend the tournament. Up went the panic flag to find a plan B. We thought we had a team to step in, but late Friday they backed out. So we contacted St. Norbert and Transylvania and they both graciously altered their schedule. So now the Schedule is as follows:

OU vs St. Norbert, Friday at 6 pm

St. Norbert vs Transylvania, Saturday at 2 pm

Ou vs Transylvania, Sunday at 2 pm

The combined record of the three teams is 16-3! St. Norbert finished in the top 25 last season and was a pre-season top 25 team this season. Coach Tilley has been the head coach at St. Norbert for 32 years and is fast approaching the 500-win plateau (492-246). They graduated 1 senior from a team that went 22-5 last season and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Transylvania is presently 6-1 against a very difficult schedule. Coach Todd is in his third year at Transy earning a bid to the NCAA Tournament in his first season. Last season, the Pioneers suffered a team’s nightmare suffering 5 (yes 5!) season-ending ACL knee injuries. They still finished 15-12. The team is whole this season and playing well.

Sorry about the scheduling, but as it turns out, all three games should be great!

Remember, this is our fundraiser and there are NO passes for the games. Thx for your support.

THIS YEAR’S COACHING STAFF

(AND WHAT A STAFF IT IS!)

Theresa Gernatt - Coach Tag brings with her a suitcase full of D-I experience. Tag played at Ga. Tech and her resume includes a stint at Maryland, Miss. St., and 7 years at Florida St. So how did we end up with Coach TAG? Sometimes you get lucky. Our team and program will greatly benefit from her presence.

Cindy Vaios - Coach Vaios returns for a second season with an expanded role. Cindy will be involved and prepare game scouting reports for opposing teams as well as individual workouts for the players. She is also the head Women’s Golf Coach at OU.

Fallon Rehmert - Coach Rehmert comes to us from Vassar College where she was first asst. Fallon is a graduate of Maryville University in St. Louis. While at Maryville, her team went to three NCAA Tournaments. Fallon brings a lot of energy to the program and is used to winning. Fallon will also be involved with game prep and individual player development.

ALUMNI GAME – JANUARY 10

OU VS SEWANEE

The men play at 6, followed by the women

The all important Alumni Games will precede the above games.

The Women’s Alumni game will tipoff around 3, and the men’s game will be immediately after. Dinner will be provided following the alumni games. So plan to stay and make a day of it. OUR TRAINING STAFF WILL BE AVAILABLE TO HANDLE THOSE ACHING MUSCLES. We look forward to seeing all the grads. Contact me to make sure we reserve you a spot on one of the teams.

TIDBITS

Coach Campbell is off to a 5-3 start. Had Trinity down 30-18 at the half before losing by 10. She doesn’t have a long bench but we all know Coach Liz will get the best out of what she has.
We dropped to #9 in one poll and #11 in the other following the 1-pt. loss to Emory.
Biz Richmann was named to the D3 Hoops Team of the Week!
Men off to a great start (6-2) with big W’s over Maryville and DePauw. They are playing exciting bball. Should be a great winter in Dorough this season.
Remember... the Coach’s Show every Tuesday at 11. If you can’t listen at 11, you can replay it by going to the archives. You can also replay the games in archives. Usually have a player or two join in.
THX TO ALL THOSE ARRANGING THE BETWEEN-SEMESTERS MEALS. IT DEFINITELY MAKES A DIFFERENCE.

TO OPEN THE SEASON...

2008-11-23T16:40:00.061-05:00

4 GAMES IN 8 DAYS!

(WHO DID THE SCHEDULING?)

Yes, the #2 ranked Stormy Petrels played 4 games in 8 days to open the season.

Here are the details:

The Petrels averaged 91 points per game and won by an average of 26.
The 5 senior starters averaged only 25 minutes per game... but each player averaged 5 rebounds per game, 3 assists, 13 points, and under 3 turnovers per game (which is great considering our pace and it's early in the year).
Our bench has outscored every opponent's bench.
For the 4 games, we shot 47% from the floor.
Averaged over 20 assists per game
Forced an average 26 turnovers per game.
Averaged 10 more rebounds per game then the opponents. (Remember our starting lineup is all but huge... 5'10", 5'8", 5'7, 5'7", 5"6")

83 OU

65 FERRUM

Four players score in double figures, led by Katie Kulavic with 19. Biz Richmann 16 pts., Anna Findley 15 pts. & 8 rebs., and Tina Grace 14 pts. Hannah Brooks chipped in 8 pts., 7 rebs., 6 assists. All dressed players saw action and the team shot 48% from the field.

91 OU

67 PIEDMONT

Every player scored, including new addition Amaris Wilson who has just joined the team (more later). We always count on Brooks to anchor our defense but this season we are looking for her to be more involved in the offense and she has responded by knocking down 10 points. Grace and Richmann each had 13 pts., and 6th man Jamie Osmanson had 10 pts. in 17 minutes. Soph. Ari Brown pulled down a career high 9 rebounds.

87 OU

60 GRINNELL

The Wheaton Invitational Tip-Off Tournament, Wheaton, Il.

Ari Brown continued her excellent play coming off the bench and scored a career high 14 pts., plus pulling down 8 rebs. in only 14 minutes of playing time. Our only true freshman, Rena Crossland, also had a career high 10 points. Soph. post Regi Howell is becoming a real presence in the post. Regi blocked 3 shots, altered 3 others, and had 7 rebs.

99 OU

68 WHEATON

Championship Game, Wheaton Tip-Off Tournament

The Stormy Petrels came out flying and played one of the finest halves of basketball I've seen at OU. By the half, OU held a 61-32 lead with 10 players scoring. Tournament MVP Kulavic had 16 by the half followed by All Tournament select Richmann with 14 and Findley with 11. The Petrels were able to maintain a tempo which suited their style of play, scoring on numerous primary and secondary break situations. When playing in the half court, unselfish play was the rule rather then the exception, as demonstrated by our 14 assists. Again we finished with 4 players scoring double digits. Soph. Kelly Reeves played a very strong 17 minutes, hitting two 3's early, as did Chelsea MacDonald who had 9 pts. The team shot 56% from the field and 48% from behind the 3 point line.

NOW, CAN WE KEEP IT UP?

Our next three games will tell us a lot about where we are.

We have 6 days before our next game at hometown rival Emory on December 2 at 6pm. They're undefeated and playing well and you know they would like nothing more than to stop our run. Remember, they had us down by 20 in the first half last season before we wore them down and won by 12.

AND THEN...

DEPAUW COMES TO TOWN DECEMBER 5 for the first conference showdown. DePauw is ranked #3 or #5 in both national polls, and as you remember, they clipped our wings 3 times last season. Come support, need I say more!?!

Sunday, Dec. 7 at 2pm, we take on the much-improved Centre Tigers who have the best freshmen class in the conference. So far they're undefeated and have been putting the hurt on whoever they play.

NEW PLAYER

AMARIS WILSON: Amaris returns to the team after taking a year off. Amaris is a 5'9" power forward who has great ups and she'll really help us inside. She's a junior and will be around next season as well.

HAPPENINGS

Sad to report that Taymah Jones will be out for the season again. Taymah suffered a torn ACL in her other knee. She's been an inspiation to us all with her hard work and dedication to the team while rehabbing from her first ACL repair. Taymah's mental tenacity is absolutely astounding and I know she is capable of responding again! Her surgery is scheduled for mid-December.
Special fan in Chicago: Biz Richmann's Granddad, who has never seen her play until our visit last weekend... and Biz did not disappoint.
More Special Fans in Chicago: A whole horde of Nancy Kulavic's clan including two brothers, cousins, nieces and nephews all yelling "GO KATIE GO". Katie also did not disappoint. Typically, Katie said "It was embarrassing."
Usual Special Guests in Chicago: Our many loyal parents who made the trip and also took the team downtown on the train to see beautiful (but COLD) Center City Chicago Friday evening.
OPENING GAMES: A special thx to our home game operations crew, led by head baseball Coach Dan Giordano. I will have to pay off this Philly boy in soft pretzels and Philly Cheesesteaks.
HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

SCRIMMAGE SEASON ENDS

2008-11-10T22:02:00.026-05:00

SCRIMMAGE SEASON ENDS ON AN UPPER

Two weeks ago the Stormy Petrels traveled to Pensacola to scrimmage D-II Univ. of West Florida. We held our own, outscoring UWF during the first 20 minute segment, while UCF outscored us in the second. Our new players, as well as our sophomore crew, gained valuable playing experience as we try to lengthen our bench.

We feel this is of prime importance as we prepare to uphold our lofty season goals.

After the scrimmage we all, including all our fans that traveled to Pensacola, gathered at the Grace's home where we were treated to a backyard shrimp boil-BBQ extravaganza, topped off with smoors cooked over an open fire. That Grace Clan and friends really know how to put on a party and I know Grandmom was watching over us.

Our senior crew was not exactly proud of how they played during the scrimmage and they came back to Atlanta and we had two weeks of hard and productive practices preparing for our scrimmage against D-I Jacksonville State in Alabama.

Again, all our players received ample playing time and our D-III Petrels gave the Gamecocks all they could handle. Led by Kulavic, Findley and Richmond, the Petrels proved they can play at many levels of competition. New addition Kelley Reeves had an excellent scrimmage.

As we told the players after the scrimmage, this will be the last time they will be considered an underdog as they will definitely have a target on their back every time they walk on the floor.

LET THE SEASON BEGIN AND IT'S BUSY FROM THE GET GO

The much anticipated 2008/09 season officially begins Saturday at 2 pm (not 7 pm as shown on the original schedule) against visiting Ferrum College from the USA South Conference. Ferrum is a pre-season pick to challenge for the top spot in their conference. They play an uptempo style of game so get ready for some end to end action.

The Stormy Petrels are again on the Dorough hardwoods Tuesday at 7 pm against NCAA Tournament foe Piedmont College. Always difficult and well coached, Piedmont is coming off two consecutive NCAA appearances and are poised to make a run for three in a row.

We then hop on a plane for Chicago and play in the prestigious Wheaton College Tipoff tournament Friday and Saturday. Friday we play Grinnell from Iowa and if we win we will probably play host Wheaton Saturday afternoon.

That will be four games in eight days. This will be a good test to see where we stand and how deep we are.

MORE PRE-SEASON ACCOLADES

The ESPN/USA Today/WBCA poll came out and they also gave the Stormy Petrels a #2 ranking matching the D3 Hoops ranking. UW-Whitewater is ranked # 1 in both polls. DePauw is ranked #3 in one and #5 in the other. Trinity also received votes in both polls.

Senior Katie Kulavic has received pre-season All American recognition by D3 Hoops. She is on the second team as one of the two guards. Katie is 344 points away from becoming the leading scorer in SCAC history. Senior Anna Findley also is poised to surpass the record.

HAPPENINGS

BASKETBALL MADNESS: Friday evening at 9pm. Both the women and men will present the 2008-09 players, followed by a slam dunk contest for the guys, the 3-point contest for both the men and women, and then two 10-minute scrimmages by both teams.

Come on out and get a preview of what this season will bring.

RECRUITING: We're on to a special recruiting class and hopefully we will see them all in black and gold come next season...

SATURDAY'S HALF TIME SHOW: The St Pius X talented 8th Grade team will play a intrasquad mini-game during half time.

WEBCAST: If you can't make it to the games, you can follow along via our online webcast of all home games and this year selected away games. Also, Live Stats are available this season.

OU is D3hoops Pre-Season #2

2008-10-30T20:55:00.012-04:00

A lofty preseason ranking for the Stormy Petrels!

2008-2009 Team Pictures

2008-10-23T13:22:00.010-04:00

This season is looking GREAT already!

Scroll down to the bottom of this page to see a slideshow of the 2008-2009 Stormy Petrel Photo Shoot.

In other news...

The Stormy Petrels are in action this weekend with a scrimmage

Saturday, October 25th, at West Florida in Pensacola, FL.

Game starts at 5:30pm.

vol 1, sea 5

2008-10-18T03:57:00.010-04:00

STORMIN' HOOP NEWS

08/09 OUTLOOK

The Petrels are off and runnin' again. After last season's Final Four Finish and everybody returning except Brit Corbett, expectations are high for another successful season. The schedule is very aggressive. We open November 15 at home against Ferrum who is predicted to finish just behind Greensboro in the USA South Conference, NCAA Tournament opponent Piedmont visits and then we are off to Chicago to play Grinnell and Wheaton. Emory at Emory follows and they return their entire starting five and then the real fun begins as the conference season commences and guess who comes to town first? Yep, the DePauw Tigers are at OU to open the conference schedule. Might as well jump right in and see what happens.

HOOPIN' & BLOGGIN'

YES, we are a BLOGGIN' this season. Through the gracious effort of my starving artist daughter Gerri DiCarlo The STORMIN' PETREL HOOP NEWS has finally entered the 21st century (only took 8 years). So save this link to keep up with the flight of the Stormy Petrels this season. By using a blog you can also post comments and be more involved if you like. Remember, since I am the blog's benevolent dictator I will have the power to filter all comments.

THE ROSTER

You will notice a few changes on the roster. Sad to say Jr. Courtney Reed will not be playing. She has decided to focus on her studies as she prepares for her bid to pursue a career in Pharmacy. We have added 3 new exciting players: Senior Carisa Mitchell transfer from Wesleyan, Sophomore Kelly Reeves transfer from George Washington and Freshman Rena Crossland from Sequoah HS. All three are aggressive quick wings who will definitely compliment our style of play. And yes we will be smaller then any team we play but they will have to catch us because we will be extremely quick and intense as usual.

We have six seniors on the roster so we are recruiting hard for 09/10 and so far we have had excellent response no doubt in part due to the success of the program led by this senior class.

HAPPENINGS

PROFESSIONAL 'WRASLIN' RETURNS TO OU

NOVEMBER 11, 7 PM

DON'T MISS THESE PRE-SEASON EVENTS. If you recall, Dean Doyle and Coach Ponder were challenged to a death match by 3 of the visiting grapplers. but our boys proved too much for the visitors as Coach Ponder flew from the top rope to squash their opponent and the ever decreasing in size Dean Doyle finished them off with a resounding body slam. Come and see all the excitement with a full card of wrestling at it's best. All proceeds benefit OU basketball.

BASKETBALL MADNESS

NOVEMBER 14, 9 PM

The MADNESS will preview both the women's and men's 08/09 teams. The men will have a slam dunk contest followed by a three point contest by both teams. Senior shooting ace Anna Findley goes for an unprecended 4 in a row 3 point championship. If she wins, Coach Ponder has made a personal challenge to uphold the honor of the men's team that he will best Anna in a three point shoot off. There will be a student money grab on the floor of Dorough as well. The evening will finish with be a short intrasquad scrimmage by both teams.

-DIII News has the Stormy Petrels as a lofty pre-season #3 in the country and Katie Kulavic as the #1 player in the South Region!

-The OU men will be much improved with the addition of a very good incoming class.

Should be an exciting time in the field house this season.

-Brittany Corbett is in grad school preparing for her shot at dental school.

-All our home games will be pod-cast again by the Petrel Broadcasting Network.

LET THE GAMES BEGIN...

2008-10-15T15:18:00.001-04:00

We're baaaack!!!