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February 27, 2000
LADY TIGERS HOST FIRST ROUND TOURNAMENT GAME
Mac Sisson
ARKADELPHIA - Despite losing their last two regular season ball games and by a fortuitous set of circumstances, the Ouachita Baptist University Lady Tigers will be hosting one of four first round games in t he 2000 NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference Women’s Championship Basketball Tournament that begins Tuesday night, February 29.
Coach Garry Crowder’s club (18-8,8-6) lost road games on Thursday and Saturday to Southwestern Oklahoma State University (67-43) and Cameron University (69-66). With help from other LSC teams on Saturday and through results earlier this season, the Lady Tigers secured the second seed in the LSC North Division and will host the Eastern New Mexico University Zias (17-9,10-6) from Portales at 7:30 p.m. in the Bill Vining Arena in the Roy and Christine Sturgis Physical Education Center. The Zias are coming to Arkadelphia ranked third in the LSC South Division.
Ouachita won a game against Eastern New Mexico, 60-40, on December 4 at Vining Arena.
The last time that Ouachita hosted a women’s national basketball tournament playoff game was at the end of the 1985-86 season when the OBU athletic program was a member of the NAIA. Then coach Virginia Honnoll’s team entertained the University of Missouri-Kansas City Lady Kangaroos. OBU won the game 74-56 and won a berth in the NAIA National Championship Tournament in Kansas City, MO.
The Southeastern Oklahoma State University Lady Savages (19-7,8-6) officially won the LSC North Division title Saturday night by defeating arch-rival Northeastern Oklahoma, 65-46, in Durant. Southeastern was the preseason choice for winning the divisional throne room, with OBU expected by league voters to finish sixth.
Ouachita, East Central (OK) University (14-12,8-6) and Northeastern (15-11, 8-6) all ended-up tied for second place at the end of regular season play in the LSC North Division, but OBU’s head-to-head confrontations with the other top three teams had the Lady Tigers drawing the nod for the second seed and hosting an opening tournament game.
In the LSC North on Tuesday night, number one seed Southeastern will host the Abilene Christian University Lady Wildcats (14-12, 10-6), seeded number four in the LSC South. East Central, number three seed in the north, will journey to Canyon, TX to face the West Texas A&M University Lady Buffs (21-5, 13-3), seeded number two in the South. Northeastern, seeded fourth in the North, is on the road to Kingsville, TX to play Texas A&M University-Kingsville (20-6, 15-1) seeded number one in the South.
The winner of Ouachita’s game with ENMU will go to the site of the highest remaining South seed for the semi-finals on Friday night, March 3.
The finals for the women’s tournament will be played on Saturday, March 4 at the site of the highest remaining South seed.
Ouachita Baptist University• Lady Tigers
