Feb. 26, 2003

ABILENE, Texas -

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Multimedia Presentation - The American Southwest Conference Tournament will be covered by several mediums. For internet listeners the HSU game(s) will be on www.tsrnsports.com. Live in-game stats will be on www.hsuathletics.com and the live radio broadcast can be heard at 90.5 in the Big Country, with John Wilson doing the call. If the Cowgirls reach the finals KTAB-TV will broadcast the finals live at 6 p.m.

ASC Tournament Notes - The Cowgirls have won all four American Southwest Conference Tournaments, including winning two on their home floor (1999, 2001). Kendra Anderson has been named MVP of the last three ASC Tournaments ... The Cowgirls are 8-0 in the ASC Tournament, Mississippi College has an 0-3 record, Mary Hardin-Baylor is 1-1 and LeTourneau is making its first appearance in the ASC playoffs ... The Cowgirls are 5-0 against ASC East opponents in the tournament ... The winner of the ASC Tournament gets an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

Versus the Field - Five Cowgirls -- Kendra Anderson (19.5), Laura Ricci, Lauren Harris, Diana Martinez (11.0) and Sarah Allen (10.3) -- averaged double figures in the four games against the three teams in the tournament. In the four games the Cowgirls shot 49.8 percent from the field and 46.9 percent from behind the arc. The Cowgirls have forced 107 turnovers in the four games and have committed just 64. They have more steals (67) than turnovers in the four games. HSU is 4-0 against the three teams in the ASC Tournament this season. They defeated Mary Hardin-Baylor, 97-76 and 78-68 and beat Mississippi College 75-56 and LeTourneau 89-68.

Cowgirls Move To No. 1 - The Cowgirls are ranked No. 1 in the nation in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association/ESPN/USA Today Poll that was released on Wednesday. The Cowgirls are No. 1 for the first time since joining Division III in the 1997 season. Th Cowgirls were ranked No. 1 in the NAIA in 1995. For some reason the Cowgirls keep dropping in the D3hoops.com poll. They have dropped from second to fourth in the last three polls. No. 3 Wisconsin-Eau Claire jumped to No. 1 in that poll this week.

Streaking - Hardin-Simmons comes into the tournament riding a 24-game winning streak overall and a 25-game winning streak against American Southwest Conference foes. The Cowgirls have also won 36 in a row at the Mabee Complex, the longest home-court winning streak in the nation. HSU joins Hope College as the lone undefeated teams in Division III.

Seniors Looking For 100 - The Cowgirl senior class of Sarah Allen, Kendra Anderson, KraTaura Buckner, Terri Robinson and Laura Ricci have a career record of 99-10. With a win over LeTourneau in the semifinals the class will earn its 100th win in the Cowgirls uniform.

Anderson Excels - Senior Kendra Anderson has been named a finalist for the Josten's Trophy, which is given to the Division III Player of the Year. She leads the team with a 19.4 ppg and a 9.9 rpg average. She has also earned Verizon Academic All-District honors and will be in the running for All-American honors for the second straight year. She needs 116 points to become the all-time leader in points scored at HSU in the non-scholarship era. She has been named ASC West Player of the Week three times this season, including this week.

Moving up the Charts - Kendra Anderson needs 118 more points to become the Cowgirls all-time leading scorer in the non-scholarship era. She needs just 16 points this weekend to move to fourth on the list, passing her totals for the last two seasons and Donna Roberts in 1993. She needs 19 field goals to tied the single-season mark. Diana Martinez needs just 11 more assists to move into second-place on the single-season charts. She has 102 and 131 by Roberts is the single-season best.

Tale of Two Halves - In the first 12 games of the season the Cowgirls have four players that averaged double figures. Kendra Anderson led the way with 18.7 points. Lauren Harris (11.8), Laura Ricci (10.8) and Sarah Allen (10.2) all hit double figures. In the second half only Anderson (20.1) and Allen (10.0) have averaged double figures. However, seven players have averaged 7.7 points or more, whereas, in the first half only five players averaged 7.7 points or more.