Dec. 16, 2009

Arkansas Game Notes

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern (RV/RV) enters Thursday's game against Arkansas in search of its third-consecutive victory, having most recently dispatched of Big XII foe Kansas State 53-50 Sunday in Manhattan. Tip is set for noon from Welsh-Ryan Arena as Northwestern hosts the eighth-annual Field Trip Day. The game will be streamed on bigtennetwork.com

About Field Trip Day
Over 3,000 youth from area schools are expected to attend Thursday's Field Trip Day. The event's mission is to bring area youth into a collegiate atmosphere and to highlight what it means to be a student-athlete.

The event, now in its eighth season, has become an annual tradition for many schools around the Chicagoland area. The setting allows teachers to expose their students to the traditional values of education, teamwork and healthy lifestyles in a non-traditional setting.

"Field Trip Day is a tremendous event that our team looks forward to each season," Head Coach Joe McKeown said. "The opportunity for Northwestern to showcase our student-athletes as role models and to demonstrate the valuable lessons that sports can instill in young people is a great honor."

Next Up...
Following Thursday's game, the Wildcats battle Chicago State (12/19) and Loyola (Chicago) (12/22), in their final two nonconference contests of the year. Following a break for the holidays, Big Ten play resumes on Dec. 28 when Northwestern travels to Ann Arbor for a 6 p.m. CT battle with the Wolverines.

Last Time Out...
Northwestern used double-digit performances from Amy Jaeschke, Kristin Cartwright and Brittany Orban to defeat Kansas State, 53-50, in a thriller Sunday afternoon in front of 3,424 fans at Bramlage Coliseum.

Jaeschke led NU with 16 points, while Cartwright chipped in 13 points and five boards. Orban came up big in the second half and finished with 12 points and eight rebounds. As a team, Northwestern held Kansas State to just 32 percent shooting from the field and out-rebounded the Wildcats 36-32.

Opponent profile
Arkansas Razorbacks
• 2009-10 Record: 6-2
• Series History: 2-0, Arkansas
• Last Meeting: 2008, 60-44, Arkansas
• Arkansas enters Thursday's game with a 6-2 mark on the season. The Razorbacks have won five out of their last six contests, including a two-point victory against Kansas State, NU's last opponent.
• Four Razorbacks are averaging double-figures in Charity Ford (12.3 ppg), C'eira Ricketts (11.0 ppg), Lyndsay Harris (10.5 ppg) and Sarah Watkins (10.4 ppg). Sophomore Ashley Daniels leads the way on the boards with 6.5 per outing.
• Arkansas has traditionally been known as a team looking to get out in transition, and this year is no different. The Razorbacks also use their athleticism on the defensive end, averaging 12 steals per game.

Talk About Some Nail Biters
The Wildcats' last three games have been enough to send even the calmest NU fan pacing. Northwestern dropped a one-point decision at home to Clemson on a last-second three pointer on Dec. 3, and has won the last two games by a combined five points. Northwestern pulled out a 60-58 victory against Purdue in the conference debut on Dec. 6 and made key plays down the stretch for a 53-50 road win against Kansas State.

Orban Getting It Done For The 'Cats
Brittany Orban has been a huge contributor for Northwestern this season. The sophomore has tallied double-figures five times this year, including the past three contests, and is second on the squad in total points with 90 in nine games (10.0 ppg). She recently tied a career-best with eight rebounds against Kansas State Sunday.

Jaeschke 4th In The Nation In Blocks; Now Second All-Time In NU History
Junior Amy Jaeschke ranks 4th in the nation in blocks with 4.0 rejections per game according to the most recent NCAA statistics (through 12/13/09). Last season, the 6-5 center set a Wildcat single-season record with 96 rejections. Jaeschke now has 183 career swats, which makes her second all-time in NU history.

Marshall Providing Steady Play At Point
Junior Beth Marshall has stepped in to provide Northwestern much-needed leadership and production at the point this year. After sitting out the past two seasons due to injury, the Fishers, Ind., native has come back to not only start for the Wildcats but to turn in strong performances in several statistical categories. Marshall is 16th in the nation and first in the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.46 apg), dishing out 32 helps on the season while only committing 13 miscues. She is tied for second on the team in steals with 11, and is averaging 30 minutes per game.

For complete game notes, please click on the PDF above.