Nov. 5, 2000
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - Junior guard Natalie Powers (Owensboro, Ky./Apollo HS) rang up game highs of 21 points and nine rebounds, and senior All-America forward ShaRae Mansfield (Louisville, Ky./Manual HS) added 20 points and eight boards, lifting Western Kentucky to an easy 95-61 win over the Nashville All-Stars in its exhibition opener Sunday afternoon at E.A. Diddle Arena. WKU has now won its last 10 exhibition contests and is a perfect 7-0 in preseason tilts under fourth-year head coach Steve Small.
The Lady Toppers also got a boost from their bumper crop of newcomers, led by freshman guard Jamie Truitt (Owensboro, Ky./Apollo HS), who came off the bench to pour in 14 points, including four three-point field goals. Freshman point guard Camryn Whitaker (Cynthiana, Ky./Harrison County HS) and freshman forward Leah Lineberry (Calvert City, Ky./Marshall County HS) each got the starting nod in their first-ever college contest, and both players turned in solid performances. Whitaker dished out nine assists with just one turnover in 29 minutes and hit all three of her shots from the field, while Lineberry played a team-high 30 minutes and collected eight rebounds. As a team, Western held a sizeable 51-28 edge on the glass, and outscored the All-Stars, 28-6, in the paint.
"The highlight of the whole evening was the maturity the team played with," Small said. "We had three potential starters on the bench and put young players in a pressure situation by having to start them. The girls played like they practiced and had fun while they played. We did very well running the floor, which is one of our strengths."
After struggling to a 17-17 tie through the first 10 minutes of action, the Lady Toppers got their offense going, mounting an 11-4 run that was highlighted by a pair of treys from Truitt. The All-Stars cut the lead to 28-23 on Tracy Davis' bucket with 6:45 remaining, but that only stopped the WKU charge temporarily. The Lady Toppers ended the half on a 17-2 spree, sparked by two three-pointers from sophomore guard Kristina Covington (Elizabethtown, Ky./Elizabethtown HS), to take a 45-25 lead at the intermission.
Western found its shooting touch in the second half, connecting at a sizzling 55.6% clip to keep Nashville at bay. The All-Stars kept the deficit around 20 points for the first eight minutes of the period, before Whitaker ignited a 19-4 run with a transition layup. Covington punctuated the surge with her third triple of the day, giving the Lady Toppers a comfortable 81-47 lead with 6:11 to play.
Western Kentucky will close out its exhibition schedule Saturday at 7 p.m. (CST) when it plays host to the Premier All-Stars at Diddle Arena. The Lady Toppers will open the 2000-01 season Friday, Nov. 17, at 6:30 p.m. when they take on defending West Coast Conference champion Pepperdine at the Hawaiian Regent Classic in Honolulu.
-- WKU --
