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Megan Miller

The Wittenberg women's basketball team may have taken a somewhat circuitous route, but the Tigers are right where they want to be at this time of the 2004-05 season. The two-time defending North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament champions are seeded third in this year's tournament after tying for second place in the regular season standings, and the Tigers are set to tip off against second-seeded Denison at 5:30 p.m. tonight.

For the first time in four years, the tournament is not hosted by Wittenberg. Kenyon, regular season champions for the first time in nearly a decade with a 14-2 NCAC regular season record, is the host, and the Ladies will face fifth-seeded Ohio Wesleyan at 7:45 p.m. Friday in the other semifinal.

Wittenberg advanced to the tournament semifinals for the 16th straight year (every year since joining the league in 1989) with a 73-51 win over sixth-seeded Wooster on Tuesday. It was Wittenberg's seventh win in the last eight games to improve to 17-9 overall after finishing 12-4 in the NCAC regular season.

Trailing 21-13, Wittenberg went on a 24-6 run over the final 11 minutes of the first half to check into the locker room with a 10-point halftime advantage. In the second half, Wooster never got the lead back under 10 points, and a 10-0 run that spanned six minutes expanded the Wittenberg advantage from 43-33 to 53-33 and effectively ended the game.

The Tigers got 21 points from sophomore guard Megan Miller (Lancaster, Ohio/Lancaster), matching her career-high established in the regular season finale at Ohio Wesleyan to lead all scorers. Also turning in solid performances were freshman post Ali Rohlfs (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) with 10 points and eight rebounds, sophomore post Kathy Hittle (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) with nine points and eight boards and freshman guard Ellie Stonecash (Springboro, Ohio/Middletown Fenwick) with nine points on 4-of-8 shooting in just 10 minutes off the bench.

The Tigers rounded out the regular season with a 67-55 road win over rival Ohio Wesleyan on Saturday. It was Wittenberg's eighth straight victory over Ohio Wesleyan, dating back to an 81-75 overtime loss in the 2002 NCAC Tournament championship game.

The two offensive catalysts for Wittenberg were Miller and Rohlfs. Miller hit four three-pointers and 7-of-8 free throws en route to a game- and career-high 21 points. Rohlfs was the high scorer in the first half and she went on to put up 14 points for the game. In addition, Hittle finished with nine points and 11 rebounds, the latter being a game-high.

Wittenberg jumped out to a 10-3 lead early in the game as Rohlfs scored eight of the Tigers' first 10 points, including a pair of three-pointers. The lead swelled to 35-20 by halftime, and the Battling Bishops never got closer than seven points the rest of the way. The Tigers enjoyed a phenomenal 24-rebound advantage, including 19 offensive caroms, compared to 23 total rebounds for the host team.

Wittenberg and Denison have met twice in 2004-05 and the Big Red have emerged victorious both times. On Dec. 1, the Tigers dropped a 63-59 decision in Springfield and on Jan. 19, the Big Red captured a 52-44 victory.