DAYTON — The Wright State women’s basketball program returns home to face Division II Slippery Rock on Monday night inside the Nutter Center. The non-conference tilt will tipoff at 7 p.m. and stream on ESPN+. Live stats will also be available.
GAME INFORMATION
Saturday, November 20 – 7 p.m. – Watch – Live Stats – Tickets – WSU Game Notes
LAST TIME OUT
The Raiders are coming off a 72-63 victory at Indiana State on Saturday afternoon. Layne Ferrell led Wright State with an 18-point, 14-rebound double-double in addition to a team-leading four steals and three blocks. Alexis Hutchison scored a game-high 26 points, while Cara VanKempen and Kacee Baumhower chipped in with eight points each.
Wright State raced out to a 17-10 lead after one quarter of play and led the rest of the way. The Raiders shot an efficient 42.6 percent (26-of-61) overall, which included nine 9-point makes and an 11-of-13 (84.6%) mark at the charity stripe. WSU’s defense limited the Sycamores to just two 3-point makes while turning 16 ISU turnovers into 15 points.
HISTORY VS. SLIPPERY ROCK
Wright State took down SRU 75-68 in the lone meeting between the two teams in 1985.
SCOUTING “THE ROCK”
Slippery Rock, a Division II program out of the PSAC Conference, is 0-1 on the season with a 70-46 loss against Ursuline College. Regan Atkins and Kristina Donza paced SRU with 13 points apiece in the season opener.
The Rock was picked to finish eighth in the 2023 PSAC West preseason coaches poll. Monday’s visitors went 15-13 overall and 10-12 in conference action during the 2022-23 campaign.
HOT START
Graduate forward Cara VanKempen ranks ninth nationally with a 71.4% mark on 3-pointers. She has gone 10-of-14 from beyond the arc through games, which includes a 4-for-5 showing at Michigan State (11/12) on her way to a team-leading 16 points. Last season, she ranked second on the team in 3-point percentage (42.9%).
SHOOTERS SHOOT
Wright State ranks 36th nationally and first in the Horizon League in 3-point makes per game (8.8). The Raiders have knocked down double-digit threes against Southern Indiana (11/6) and Mount Vernon Nazarene (11/14).
A season ago, WSU was one of the nation’s most prolific long-distance shooting teams, ranking second nationally in 3-point makes per game (10.1) and 22nd in 3-point percentage (.364). Wright State netted a school record 323 threes while also shattering a single-game school record with 18 3-pointers versus Cleveland State (1/20/23).
VETERAN PRESENCE
Wright State’s four upperclassmen transfers bring a wealth of experience to the Raiders with a combined 384 games of collegiate basketball, including 299 starts.
Jada Tate » 112 games (92 starts) over four seasons at Division II Tiffin
Alexis Hutchison » 108 games (103 starts) over four seasons at Division II Malone
Julia Hoefling » 84 games (41 starts) over four seasons at Loyola Chicago
Layne Ferrell » 80 games (63 starts) over three seasons at Akron
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Graduate transfer Alexis Hutchison tops the team in scoring (16.3 ppg) through four games. She scored a season-high 26 points in Wright State’s 72-63 win at Indiana State (11/18). Her 19 points at Southern Indiana (11/6) were the most in a Raider debut since Angel Baker’s 21 points against CSU Bakersfield (11/6/18) at the start of the 2018-19 season.
Redshirt senior guard Layne Ferrell is averaging 11.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.5 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game. At Indiana State, she stuffed the stat sheet with 18 points, 14 rebounds, four steals, and three blocks.
THREE STRAIGHT?
The Raiders are seeking their second three-game winning streak under the direction of third-year head coach Kari Hoffman. WSU ended the 2022-23 regular season with consecutive wins, followed by a victory over Oakland in the Horizon League Championship quarterfinals.
BOUNCED BACK
Sophomore guard Lauren Scott was held scoreless in her opening two games of the 2023-24 campaign but erupted for a career-high 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting in Wright State’s 88-64 win over Mount Vernon Nazarene (11/14).
1K CLUB
Jada Tate scored eight points against Mount Vernon Nazarene (11/14), surpassing 1,000 points in her collegiate career. The Pickerington, Ohio native joined the Raiders after spending four seasons at Tiffin, where she compiled 991 points over 112 games (92 starts).
CAREER MARKS
Senior forward Rachel Loobie finished with career-high marks in steals (5), assists (3), blocks (2), and minutes played (24) against Southern Indiana. She has pulled down a career-high eight rebounds at Michigan State (11/12) and Indiana State (11/18).
KEY RETURNERS
The Raiders return five letterwinners from a year ago, anchored by starting guard Kacee Baumhower (9.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.3 apg) and starting forward Cara VanKempen (6.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg). The duo is joined by Horizon League All-Freshman Team recipient Makiya Miller (5.9 ppg, 1.5 apg), Lauren Scott (4.8 ppg), and Rachel Loobie (2.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg).
MILESTONE WATCH
Alexis Hutchison is nearing 1,500 career points (currently at 1,452 points) and 200 career steals (currently at 188 steals) in her collegiate career. The guard spent her first four seasons at Malone University, where she was a two-time NCCAA Division I All-Midwest Region selection and a Third Team NCCAA All-American in 2023. Julia Hoefling has compiled 89 career blocks over 88 collegiate games.
PRESEASON POLL
The Raiders finished seventh in the 2023 Horizon League preseason poll with 54 points, which the league’s 11 head coaches voted on. Green Bay (121 points) was selected to win the conference after receiving all 11 first-place votes.
FAMILY HOOPS TREE
Graduate forward Jada Tate has three siblings with Division I college basketball experience, including her older brother Jae’Sean, who played at Ohio State from 2014-2018 and is in his fourth year as an NBA forward for the Houston Rockets. Her brother Jalen was a four-year starter at Northern Kentucky (2016-2020) before spending the 2020-21 season at Arkansas. Her sister Jocelyn is currently a junior guard at Michigan State. Tate’s father, Jermaine, played college basketball for Ohio State and Cincinnati before embarking on a 13-year professional career.
BASKETBALL RUNS IN THE FAMILY
Sophomore guard Lauren Scott is the granddaughter of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach Gary Williams, who led the Maryland men’s basketball program to its first-ever NCAA Tournament Championship in 2002. He also served as head coach for American (1978- 82), Boston College (1982-86), and Ohio State (1986-89). Currently, he is Maryland’s Senior Managing Director for Alumni Relations and Athletic Development.
BUILT IN OHIO
Six of WSU’s seven total newcomers played high school basketball in Ohio, including four from the Greater Dayton area. In total, 11 individuals on Wright State’s 15-player roster are from Ohio.
RAIDER LEADERSHIP
Wright State is set for its third season under the direction of head coach Kari Hoffman, who was introduced as the eighth head coach in program history in May 2021. In her second year at WSU, Hoffman guided the Raiders to a four-win improvement, a Horizon League Championship quarterfinals appearance, and a 6-5 record over the program’s last 11 games. Hoffman joined the Raiders after serving as the head coach at nearby Cedarville University for five seasons, where she won 106 games, led the Yellow Jackets to three regular season conference titles, and was named the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2018 and 2021. Hoffman also earned NCCAA Midwest Region Coach of the Year honors in 2019 and 2020. In addition to Hoffman, assistant coaches John Leonzo, Megan Leuzinger, and Patrick Bain enter their third season at Wright State. Director of Operations Emily Chapman joined the coaching staff in August 2023.
GET YOUR TICKETS
Season tickets for the Raider women’s basketball campaign are on sale through WSURaiders.com or by contacting the ticket office at (937) 775-4936, starting as low as $40. Single-game tickets are as low as $5, with general admission seating throughout the arena.
MOBILE TICKETING
Wright State has launched the Wright State Raiders app, allowing fans to stay up to date on Raider women’s basketball. Fans are encouraged to use the Wright State Raiders app as the primary method for managing their digital tickets, which are required for entry to all WSU basketball events. Tickets for the 2023-24 basketball seasons are now uploaded and accessible on all purchaser accounts. Fans can easily view their tickets, download them to their mobile wallet, or transfer them to another individual account.
UP NEXT
Wright State stays home for a meeting against Marshall on Monday, November 27. The game will start at 7 p.m. and stream on ESPN+.