Oct. 30, 2007
Penn State vs. Millersville Game Notes
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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - Fans will have the opportunity to see the Lady Lions in action for the first time under head coach Coquese Washington when the Penn State women's basketball team opens its 2007-08 season with an exhibition game against Millersville (Pa.) on Wednesday night at 7 p.m., in the Bryce Jordan Center.
Tickets for Tuesday's exhibition are $5 for adults and free to youth and students. Kids in costume will be able to take part in the trick-or-treat path on the concourse of the Bryce Jordan Center, as well as participate in the costume parade at halftime of the game. There were also be an opportunity for fans to register to be the Halloween King and Queen on the concourse. The king and queen will receive season tickets, a personalized jersey and an autographed Lady Lion basketball.
The Lady Lions are 10-1 all-time against the Marauders, including a 100-38 victory over Millersville in the last meeting between the squads during the 1978-79 campaign.
The Lady Lions return seven letterwinners from a year ago, including All-Big Ten honorable mention selection Kam Gissendanner (Clairton, Pa.). Gissendanner, a three-year team captain, is the squad's lone senior and has proven herself to be the consummate leader. She is a two-time All-Big Ten honorable mention choice and is closing in on 1,000 point for her career, needing 152 tallies to reach the milestone. Last season, Gissendanner came on strong in conference play finishing second on the team in scoring (15.2) against Big Ten foes. She also finished 41st in the NCAA in overall free throw percentage with an 84.0% mark from the charity stripe.
Junior Brianne O'Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.), who needs just 18 assists to become the 12th player in school history to reach the 300-assist plateau, is back to run the point for the Lady Lions. She was in the Top 10 in the conference in assists (4.29), steals (2.16) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.45) last season.
Sophomore guard Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio) is coming off of a rookie season that saw her take home All-Big Ten honorable mention accolades and a berth on the Big Ten All-Freshman team. Grant led the team in scoring with 452 points, which is third on the Penn State freshman season scoring list behind Kelly Mazzante and Susan Robinson. She reached double figures in scoring 20 times as a freshman, including seven performances with 20 or more points.
In addition to a solid group of returning veterans, the Lady Lions have three incoming freshmen that will likely make an immediate impact. Evelyn Lewis (Hampton, Va.) averaged 15.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game as she led Hampton High School to the Virginia AAA State Championship. Julia Trogele (Devon, Pa.) accounted for 18.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per outing her senior season to lead Villa Maria Academy to the PIAA State Championship game. She was a first team All-State choice, as well as the Main Line Times Player of the Year and the Daily Local Player of the Year. Janessa Wolff (Park Rapids, Minn.) was the 2006-07 Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year and a finalist for Minnesota Miss Basketball after contributing 22.0 points and 16.4 rebounds per game. She holds the Park Rapids High School record for points (2,116), rebounds (1,366) and blocked shots (362).
The Lady Lions open the 2007-08 season with an exhibition game against Millersville on Oct. 31 and then host the WBCA/Basketball Travelers Classic at the Bryce Jordan Center November 9-11. Penn State will face Arizona on Nov. 9, before meeting Charlotte (Nov. 10) and in-state rival Pittsburgh (Nov. 11).
Washington and the 2007-08 Lady Lions will host a meet-n-greet at Center Stage in the Nittany Mall on Sunday, November 4 from 1-2 p.m. The Bryce Jordan Center will also be conducting national anthem singer tryouts for the WBCA Classic (Nov. 9-11) from 2-4 p.m., at Center Stage.
This season, Penn State introduces a new seven-game Lady Lion Flex Plan package where fans will receive a ticket to the Duke (Sun., Dec. 2) and Georgetown (Sun., Dec. 9) games and the second annual THINK PINK Day versus Iowa (Sun., Feb. 10), as well as four flex vouchers to redeem in any ticket combination for Big Ten games. Fans can purchase single-game tickets or flex plan packages by visiting the Bryce Jordan Center box office, calling 814-865-5555 or 800-863-3336 or by clicking on the ticket link on www.GoPSUsports.com.