Nov. 6, 2005
The Iowa women’s basketball tipped-off its 2005-06 season today with an 81-61 exhibition game victory over Wisconsin AAU in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Ten of Iowa’s 12 players that played scored at least one point in the victory. The Hawkeyes were led by their post players, who combined for 42 points.
Freshman Megan Skouby was impressive in her debut, scoring a team-high 17 points. The 6-6 center converted 8-12 from the field and 1-1 from the foul line. Sophomore Stacy Schlapkohl netted 14 points today on 6-9 shooting from the floor and 2-2 from the free throw line. Sophomore Krista VandeVenter added eight points, while senior Morgan Kasperek contributed three points. VandeVenter continued where she left off last year on the boards, pulling down a team-high nine rebounds in only 21 minutes of action.
Senior Crystal Smith scored 14 points in limited action, while freshman Wendy Ausdemore tallied 10 points. Sophomore Abby Emmert recorded eight points on 3-3 shooting from the field and 3-4 from the foul line.
A 3-pointer by Wisconsin AAU at the 5:52 mark of the first half gave Iowa’s opponent a 29-27 advantage with 5:52 left in the first half, but that was its last lead of the game. The Hawkeyes closed the half on a 14-5 run to take a nine-point lead into the locker room (41-32).
Wisconsin AAU trimmed Iowa’s lead to six (59-53) with seven minutes remaining in the second period, but the Hawkeyes responded with a 22-4 run to rebuild its lead to a game-high 24 points and ultimately win by 20.
Iowa’s aggressive play garnered the Hawkeyes 28 free throw attempts — making 18. Wisconsin AAU was rewarded with only 13 free throw attempts.
Hawkeye freshman Lindsey Nyenhuis did not dress due to an injured foot. It is hopeful she will see her first taste of game action in Iowa’s second exhibition contest.
Iowa plays its final exhibition game next Sunday vs. Minnesota State. Tip-off is slated for 2:05 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.