Springfield, Ohio – After leading the Wittenberg women’s basketball team to its first North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Tournament championship and NCAA Division III Tournament berth in 11 years, senior Darbie Zirkle (St. Paris, Ohio/Graham) has been selected to the D3hoops.com Team of the Week.
Zirkle, a 5-foot-6 guard/wing, was named Most Valuable Player of NCAC Tournament after pouring in 63 points in wins over Kenyon, Denison and Ohio Wesleyan. She scored 17 points in each of the first two rounds before exploding for a career-high 29 points in the championship game victory over Ohio Wesleyan on Saturday, Feb. 28. She added 14 rebounds, six steals and three assists in the three games.
The tourney crown earned the Tigers their first NCAA Division III Tournament berth since 2004, when Wittenberg advanced to the Round of 16 under legendary coach Pam Evans Smith. The Tigers will take on Transylvania in the first round of the national competition at 5 p.m. (CT) Friday, March 6, in a game hosted by Washington University.
Zirkle leads Wittenberg in scoring at 16.1 points per game in her first season as a starter. She also pulls down 5.1 rebounds per game to go along with 65 assists (second on the team), 27 blocked shots (first on the team) and 93 steals (first on the team). Her 93 steals have set a new program record, and she ranks 33rd in the nation with 3.1 steals per game.
Written By: Ryan Maurer