K-State's season ends with loss to Vandy

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Kansas State coach Deb Patterson could hardly face her team in the locker room Monday after her Wildcats lost to Vanderbilt in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. As she looked at her prolific senior class, one that had captured an outright Big 12 Championship and appeared in two consecutive NCAA second round games, it was difficult to comprehend that their K-State careers were finished.

That senior class, led by point guard Shalee Lehning, saw its college run come to a close when the fifth-seeded Wildcats fell to the fourth-seeded Vanderbilt Commodores 74-61 in the second round of the Raleigh Region of the NCAA Tournament on Monday at The Pit.

"They really have represented everything we dream that Kansas State women's basketball being about," Patterson said as tears began to develop in her eyes. "They have been an unbelievably special group. It's mind-boggling to think they're walking out the door now."

They will shut the door behind a game that was well in their hands during the first half. K-State was able to keep up with the Commodores early as they took advantage of their size over Vanderbilt with senior forward Marlies Gipson able to connect from down in the post, while senior guard Danielle Zanotti opened up the perimeter game.

Following a basket by Christina Wirth, who finished the game with 24 points, to put Vanderbilt up 20-19, the Wildcats perimeter game would again open up as junior Ashley Sweat, who led K-State with 17 points, and Zanotti hit consecutive 3-pointers igniting a 11-2 run putting the Cats up 30-23.

K-State would maintain a slight lead over the Commodores for the majority of the first half, thanks largely to their shooting from behind the arc.

The Wildcats began the game 5 for 5 from 3-point range and finished the half 5-6. Both Zanotti and junior guard Kari Kincaid went 2 of 2 from 3-point territory.

However, after walking into the locker room with a 38-37 lead, the game would change during the second half.

It was following a jumper by Gipson with 11:41 remaining in the second half to tie the game at 48 that Vanderbilt would pounce on the Cats with their speed and physicality.

"I think Vanderbilt got very aggressive offensively and also began to dominate the extra possessions on the rebounds," Patterson said. "I think that was probably the most significant aspect of the stretch run of that game."

That stretch run, an 11-0 burst led by forward Jennifer Risper, who sparked Vandy with 27 points, that sucked the momentum out of the Wildcats and put the Commodores (26-8) on top 59-48 with 7:38 remaining, shut the door on the Wildcats season.

During that fatal span, both Sweat and Gipson picked up their fourth personal fouls, forcing them to the bench.

Patterson would eventually return them to the game in an a desperate attempt to catch Vanderbilt, however, Gipson would be called for her fifth foul in the paint with 2:47 remaining in the game. Gipson finished the game with 16 points and six rebounds.

The Wildcats finished the season 25-8 and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year and made their 11th NCAA appearance at the NCAA tournament in the program's history, the eighth appearance under Patterson.

Despite the loss, it wasn't difficult for Lehning to look past the results on the court just moments earlier. The record-setting guard whose jersey was lifted to the rafters of Bramlage Coliseum this season was humbled as she recalled her four years at K-State.

"In the immediate, the loss is disappointing," said Lehning, who scored 10 for the Wildcats. "But we can't help but be proud of our team and the accomplishments that we have made together. I think we have surpasses a lot of expectations and we have accomplished things together that nobody ever thought was possible. It's just been great. It's been the best four years of my life."

Vandy stands in way of Cats' Sweet 16

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- On the heels of her team's first-round win over the 12th-seeded Drexel Dragons in the Raleigh Regional of the NCAA Tournament, Kansas State coach Deb Patterson will look to leap over an obstacle that has haunted her during her previous four trips to the NCAA Tournament.

On Saturday evening, the Wildcats (25-7) recorded their sixth straight first-round NCAA victory by defeating Drexel. However, Patterson's team has only managed to escape second round play, and reach Sweet 16 once in its previous attempts.

Monday night, Patterson's team will be presented with yet another opportunity to reach the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in the program's history and the second time under the direction of Patterson.

That challenge may seem like déjà vu for Patterson as it comes in the form of the fourth-seeded Vanderbilt Commodores. Vanderbilt broke the hearts of the Wildcats in 2005 with a three-point victory, also in the second round of the tournament.

Patterson, though, has pushed history aside and is focused on the present challenge at hand.

"I think it is going to be a great match up between two basketball teams that are relying right now on great senior leadership," Patterson said.

That senior leadership helped the Wildcats to roll over the Drexel Dragons on Saturday night as senior point guard Shalee Lehning baffled the zone defense of Drexel by handing out 13 assists, tying her career high.

Senior forward Marlies Gipson scored a game-high 18 points, while senior Danielle Zanotti added nine points.

Vanderbilt, (25-8) the SEC tournament champions, comes into the contest riding a four-game win streak after defeating Western Carolina 73-44 in their opening round game on Saturday evening.

The Commodores are led in scoring by senior forward Christina Wirth, who averages 16 points per game and was named the SEC tournament most valuable player and was an unanimous selection for first-team All-SEC choice. Wirth enters the game having scored double figures in 16 straight contests.

"Wirth is definitely an extremely emotional leader for her team, and I think it is just going to be a team role to try and contain her," Gipson said.

While K-State's defense finished the regular season ranked first in the Big 12 by allowing opponents only 52 points per game, Patterson emphasized the importance of containing and being aware of Wirth's presence on the floor.

"I think she is one of the premier players in the country," Patterson said. "We're going to have to have a radar on her and not lose sight of her. From that point on it's just do what you do defensively, but certainly if fail at all or bring in a preoccupation to knowing where she is and where she's going she's going to beat you."

The Wildcats meanwhile will look to their cornerstone players in Ashley Sweat, Gipson and Lehning trio Monday evening. The trio combined for 34 points in the victory against Drexel. As a team, K-State managed to shoot an even 50 percent from the floor, thanks largely to a second half surge in which they scored 42 of their 68 points after shooting 42 percent in the first half.

The K-State bench played a large part in offensive production Saturday evening, led by senior Kelsey Nelson and freshman Jalana Childs, both with eight points.

Lehning said the bench will be vital in their efforts against Vanderbilt on Monday.

"It (K-State bench production) was tremendous," Lehning said. "At this time of the year you have to rely on your bench. That is definitely something we need to happen next game. All good teams go to their bench and rely on that. That is definitely something we need to happen next game."

With a victory in the first round against Drexel completed, Patterson's squad is 40 minutes away from breaking the four-year Sweet 16 drought.

"It would be tremendous for our program and for our players more than anything," Patterson said. "You think about where we are at right now competing in the second round and in such a precious moment with such a tremendous achievement, but to be one of the 16 remaining teams would be a dream."

Lehning helps Cats run away from Drexel

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Despite scoring the game's first six points, the Drexel Dragons found themselves in quick trouble in their NCAA Tournament first-round game with the fifth-seeded Kansas State Wildcats on Saturday at The Pit. After five minutes of play, the 12th-seeded Dragons' leading scorer and Colonial Athletic Association preseason player of the year, Gabriela Marginean, headed to the bench with two fouls.

It didn't take long for the Wildcats to take advantage.

Deb Patterson's Wildcats, now 25-7, went on a run against Drexel's suddenly depleted lineup and never looked back as they defeated the Dragons 68-44 to advance to the second round of the Raleigh Regional. K-State will face the fourth-seeded Vanderbilt Commodores on Monday at The Pit, the homecourt of the New Mexico Lobos.

"It wasn't necessarily a pretty game for us at points in time, but we found a way to fight through possessions and I thought we managed the game real well in the second half overall," Patterson said.

The Dragons jumped out to a 6-0 lead over the Wildcats as K-State missed its first five field goal attempts. The Wildcats tried to get the ball inside to Ashley Sweat and Marlies Gipson, but the pair failed to connect on several forced lay-ups.

Then Marginean committed her second foul and everything about the game changed.

"I thought it was a huge factor in this game," Patterson said. "Anytime you lose somebody early in the game of this magnitude, it puts a lot of pressure on everyone else and changes the flow a little bit."

That change of flow benefited the Wildcats immediately as their offense suddenly began to click.

Patterson's team immediately started to pull away from the Dragons, as they began to break the Drexel zone defense with Gipson connecting from the paint on back-to-back attempts.

The Wildcats built a quick 11-6 lead following the run and continued to build on the momentum and went into halftime leading the Dragons, 26-19.

During the first half, senior point guard Shalee Lehning was able to penetrate the Drexel zone defense and tied the school record for assists in a game by half time with eight.

"The lanes were just open and my teammates did a great job of knocking down the shots," Lehning said. "You just have to see what the defense is giving you and tonight it was more for me to pass the ball. So, the credit goes to my teammates, I just give them the ball and they're the ones who have to do the hard work and knock it down."

Lehning would finish by tying her career high 13 assists. The 13 assists is the most by any player in an NCCA tournament game since Tameka Johnson of Louisiana State had 15 on March 26, 2005.

The Wildcat offense would continue to click in the second half as junior guard Kari Kincaid would jumpstart the Wildcats with deep 3-pointer from the wing. The Wildcats' perimeter game would open following Kincaid's shot, as the Cats would go 6 of 11 from beyond the arc in the second half after shooting 3-10 in the first half.

"I was really pleased with our perimeter (shooting) in the second half," Patterson said. "It (was) really neat to see it open up for us in the second half and I really appreciate the confidence and aggressiveness that Kelsey Nelson and Danielle (Zanotti) and Kincaid brought to the floor."

The perimeter game would prove to give the Wildcats the cushion they needed to propel them passed the Dragons in the second half.

"I said it going into the game, they have players in each position that are really threats out there," Drexel coach Denise Dillon said. "It really opened up, the drives, the kick-outs, and knocking down those threes forced us to go man-to-man. Again, they took advantage of whatever defense we showed them."

Gipson led the Wildcats with 18 points, while Sweat and Kincaid both added 11. Marginean still managed to lead the Dragons, which ended their season at 24-9, with 15 points in 24 minutes of action. Jasmina Rosseel added 13 for Drexel.

Wildcats to play Buffaloes in first round of Big 12 tourney

The K-State women's basketball team will travel to Oklahoma City to participate in the Big 12 Conference Championship Thursday following two consecutive victories to close out the regular season. The Wildcats will enter the tournament as a No. 5 seed, and will face a rematch against the Colorado Buffaloes in the first round.

The Wildcats swept Colorado in two games during regular season play, with the most recent win coming Saturday on the road.

Head coach Deb Patterson said playing Colorado recently will benefit her team's preparation heading into the first round match-up.

"It's not just the third time we are playing them, but it was just a few nights ago, so the preparation is minimized," Patterson said. "You are headed into a tournament, in which you hope to play four days in a row, that extra preparation is hopefully something that plays as an advantage."

In their previous meeting with the Buffaloes, First Team All Big 12 point guard Shalee Lehning registered her third triple-double of the season and fifth of her career. Her triple-double total leads the NCAA this season.

"I was pumped," Lehning said. "Just for the adversity I have had to face in coming back from my sickness, I hadn't felt like myself, and I actually felt like myself in Colorado."

Lehning missed three consecutive games during the second half of the conference season due to a mononucleosis infection.

While Lehning's performance proved she is well enough to play extended minutes, Patterson said she is still not at 100 percent strength. According to Patterson, Lehning tires much faster than normal and requires more recovery time following games.

"The fight and the push and the drive and the leadership we get, I couldn't ask for more when she is on the court." Patterson said. "But is she 100 percent? No, she is not."

However despite Lehning's condition, Patterson said her team cannot afford to play cautiously in the Big 12 Tournament.

"You have to live in today and not worry about tomorrow as we go through this tournament," she said. "We have to go all out every minute of every game as we head into the tournament."

Lehning said that she is feeling better each day and feels comfortable playing extended minutes in possible back to back games during the tournament.

"That is just going to have to be a day-by-day situation where we are just going to have to see how my body reacts," Lehning said. "I really am getting better everyday. I'll be fine with the minutes."

If the Wildcats win, they will face No. 4 seed Texas A&M in the second round.

The Aggies handed the Wildcats their only home loss of the season with a 71-45 rout March 1.

However, Lehning said the Wildcats will not be looking past the Buffaloes to the second round.

"It's one game at a time for us," Lehning said. "That has been the motto all season. But we also understand that we have upset teams and we have been upset, last season we were upset in the first round. So we cannot allow ourselves to overlook anybody."

Tipoff for the first round game, which will be broadcast on KMAN 1350 AM, is set for 11 a.m. at the Cox Convention Center in Oklahoma City.

Cats look for elusive road win in final regular season game

Following a upset victory over the No. 15 Texas Longhorns, the K-State women's basketball team will travel to Boulder, Colo., to face the Buffalos for their final regular season game.

The Wildcats (22-6, 9-6 Big 12 Conference) will look to build off the momentum of Wednesday's performance in which they forced the Longhorns into 19 turnovers. The K-State defense dictated the pace of the game and held the Longhorns' third-ranked Big 12 offense to 38 percent shooting from the field.

"That win [Wednesday] was just huge," said head coach Deb Patterson. "It was huge for every reason: We played well, we competed hard, we faced a top-15 opponent, we lined up a significantly deeper and more athletic team and answered that aspect of the game, whereas we struggled with that against Texas A&M."

In the game against Texas, senior point guard Shalee Lehning saw her first substantial minutes since suffering from mononucleosis.

Junior forward Ashley Sweat said having Lehning back in the lineup was significant in the success of the offense last night.

"She is such a great leader," Sweat said. "She just brings a whole different dimension to our team. Just having her back raises everyone else's confidence."

Lehning scored 11 points, handed out six assists and grabbed seven rebounds while playing 39 minutes against the Longhorns on Senior Night.

Junior guard Kari Kincaid said the Wildcats will be a different team this weekend since Lehning is healthy and able to contribute. In the Wildcats' previous meeting with Colorado, Lehning was sidelined.

"We have our All-American point guard back, which is a big weight off all our shoulders," Kincaid said. "She just makes us so much better in every aspect of the game, which Colorado will be ready for the 'Shalee Lineup.'"

Colorado will enter Saturday's game having lost seven of its previous eight games. However, despite their lack of success lately Patterson says her team is not overlooking the Buffalos before the Big 12 Tournament.

"I don't have any question in my mind that our kids are completely focused on Colorado," Patterson said.

The Cats will enter the contest looking for their first road win since their Jan. 24 victory in Lawrence over KU.

"This is another challenge for our team right now to see if we can overcome that challenge that has nicked us in the last few road games in the Big 12," Patterson said.

Tipoff for Saturday's game, which will be broadcast on 1350 KMAN, is set for 3 p.m.

Wildcats defeat Texas, grab 5th-place spot in Big 12

K-State’s defense smothered the No. 15 Texas Longhorns in a pivotal Big 12 matchup on senior night Wednesday evening at Bramlage Coliseum.

The K-State defense forced Texas into 19 turnovers, and senior Marlies Gipson scored a career-high 24 points in her final game in the “Purple Palace,” as the Wildcats defeated the Longhorns 66-50.

The Wildcats (22-6, 9-6 Big 12 Conference) fell behind early in the contest, as the speed and size of Texas immediately showed from tipoff.

Yet, K-State’s defense kept the team close to the Longhorns (20-9, 8-7 Big 12) as it forced three turnovers in the first five minutes of play.

“I thought our defense was the key tonight,” K-State head coach Deb Patterson said. “The accountability and the overall intensity and sense of purpose that our team brought to the floor defensively gave us a chance to be good tonight.”

After a jumper by Ashley Lindsey gave the Longhorns a three-point lead with seven minutes remaining in the first half, the Wildcat defense forced another turnover at the Texas end of the floor.

The momentum created by the forced turnover amassed to a 12-3 K-State scoring run to close out the first half and give the Wildcats a 31-25 halftime lead.

“I did feel as though I could really depend on our defense every possession up the floor,” Patterson said. “I did feel like momentum was in our favor defensively.”

That momentum carried into the second half as the Wildcats continued to build their lead and force turnovers on the defensive end.

The Texas offense was forced late in the shot clock on several possessions and struggled from the field. The Longhorns shot 38 percent from the field for the game.

“They kept us off balance a little bit,” Texas head coach Gail Goestenkors said. “They just did a nice job of changing up their defensive looks.”

The Wildcats continued to stretch their lead in the second half.

Junior guard Kari Kincaid hit a 3-pointer with 7:46 remaining in the second half, erupting the Bramlage crowd and stretching the K-State lead to 15, forcing Texas to call a timeout.

“I think their confidence started to build quickly,” Goestenkors said. “They hit a big 3-pointer, and I think that shifted the entire momentum of the game.”

The Wildcat lead would prove to be too great following the Texas timeout, and the Wildcats closed out the second half in convincing fashion.

“They are just an unbelievable group, and it was a very big win at this point in the season,” Patterson said.

With the victory, the Wildcats move into sole possession of fifth place in the Big 12, breaking the tie with Texas. K-State will conclude its regular season at Colorado before playing in the Big 12 Conference Tournament in Oklahoma City.

Meanwhile, the Longhorns drop to sixth place and will finish their season at home in a showdown against first-place Oklahoma.

“For us to come out and play as well together as we did [is a tribute to the team], but we did it together,” K-State senior point guard Shalee Lehning said.

“That is something that was so great tonight. It was just a big win for us to build off and build some momentum going into the [Big 12] tournament next week.”

Wildcats break away with victory over Bluejays

The Wildcats used their explosive offense to swing their way past Creighton Tuesday afternoon at Tointon Family Stadium. The Wildcats registered 16 hits in a 12-1 win against the Bluejays.

With the win, the Wildcats improved to 6-2 on the season.

Junior pitcher A.J. Morris (3-0) matched his career high, going six complete innings and striking out eight. The eight strikeouts also matched a career high for the Humble Texas product.

"It [has been] a great approach for the first eight games," head coach Brad Hill said. "A.J. [Morris] has been outstanding. He gave us a great effort on the mound today."

Morris has now gone three consecutive starts without surrendering an earned run.

The Wildcats jumped on the Bluejays early, scoring one run in each of the first three innings to take a 3-0 lead heading into the fourth inning.

"He [Morris] has just really matured for us," Hill said. "I think it is something he has been ready for and wanted and he is a great leader."

In the fourth inning, the Wildcats would take advantage of a dropped fly ball by Creighton short stop Elliot Soto. Following the error and back-to-back doubles by Nick Martini and Rob Vaughn, right fielder Jordan Cruz hit a two-run home run to left field.

The Wildcats would explode again in the sixth inning. After back-to-back singles and a sacrifice bunt by center fielder Dane Yelovich, second baseman Adam Muenster doubled to right field to bring in two Wildcat runs stretching the lead to 9-0.

"I thought our hitters did a nice job," Hill said. "[They didn't] try and swing too big or swing too hard. We hit a lot of balls the other way; I thought we had a really good approach hitting-wise."

The Wildcats would fail to score the remainder of the game; however, the 12 runs scored would prove to be plenty of cushion for K-State.

The Wildcats did give up one run in the top of the eighth as Bluejay second baseman Vicente Cafaro hit a sacrafice fly ball to left field to score Scott Thornburg who doubled down the left field line earlier.

"We are really playing the game right now," Hill said. "We haven't really recognized who we are playing, and that is not disrespect for other teams, but we are more concerned with ourselves and how we are going to approach and play and what our style is going to be. When you do that, good things are going to happen."

The Wildcats will return to Tointon Family Stadium this weekend to play in a four-game series against Niagara. The series will begin Friday with first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m.

Wildcats lose first home game of the season

It wasn't tough for senior point guard Shalee Lehning to look past the Wildcats' performance on the court Sunday afternoon. Her team quickly pushed its first home loss of the season past them, gathered at center court and embraced the opportunity to celebrate a teammate's prolific career while Lehning's jersey was lifted to the Bramlage rafters.

As Lehning put it, she was concerned with the bigger picture.

"I was just determined to try and truly take in this day and all that it stands for," Lehning said. "These things just don't happen everyday."

Prior to Lehning's ceremony, her team fell to No. 12 Texas A&M 71-45. The Wildcats (21-6, 8-6 Big 12 Conference) fell behind early in the first half as the physical Aggies (22-5, 9-5 Big 12) mounted a 17-0 run to take a 22-7 lead with nine minutes remaining in the first half.

"The first half was just a struggle for us because their defense was terrific and our offense was not on par with a top ten team," head coach Deb Patterson said.

The Wildcats fought back following the Aggie run as junior guard Kari Kincaid ended an eight minute K-State shooting drought with two consecutive three pointers.

Yet as they did for the entire night, the Aggies would answer with a stronger punch as they continued to hit shots and entered the halftime break leading the Wildcats 38-21.

"Texas A&M, in every situation where they needed to hit a shot, had players step up and hit the shot they needed," Patterson said.

K-State would make a push in the second half as it came out and shot significantly better than the previous 20 minutes.

The Wildcats began the half with an 8-2 run as the post play began to open up and Patterson offense finally found a rhythm.

"It really took us 20 minutes to gather ourselves and begin to find opportunities to exploit their defense," Patterson said.

The second half offensive surge by the Wildcats would cut the Aggie lead to nine after junior forward Ashley Sweat drove for a layup with 14:32 remaining.

However, that would be as close as the Wildcats could get to the Aggies, as senior point guard Takia Starks would take control of the Aggie offense.

The Wildcats will close their home schedule on Wednesday night as they host No. 17 Texas. Prior to the game, Lehning and the senior class will be honored before playing in their final game at Bramlage Coliseum.

Tipoff for Wednesday's senior night is set for 7 p.m.