NCAA DIV.II ELITE EIGHT TOURNAMENT – SEMIFINALS
No.1-Seed / No.1 DRURY (35-0, 18-0 Great Lakes Valley)
vs. No.5-Seed / No.24/25 LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (30-5, 13-1 Heartland)
Wednesday, March 27 – 7:30 PM (Central)
Alumni Hall (Columbus, Ohio)
Radio: Double-T 97.3 FM
All-Time Series: First Ever Meeting

HERE IS YOUR AWARD
No.24/25 Lubbock Christian University had the only upset (based on seeds) during the NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Elite Eight Tournament quarterfinals, as the No.5-seed Lady Chaparrals topped No.4-seed North Georgia 99-54 Tuesday night.  Their prize for the upset is a Wednesday night meeting with No.1 (ranked and seeded) Drury, who is the only unbeaten team in NCAA Division II with a 35-0 record. Wednesday's contest, with a berth to the championship game on the line, will be televised on CBS Sports Network and will also air on Double-T 97.3 FM.  It marks the second time this season LCU has faced a No.1 ranked squad this season, as LCU fell to Central Missouri 67-62 on Nov. 24 in San Antonio, Texas. The Lady Chaps claimed their 30th win of the season Tuesday, marking the program's first back-to-back seasons with at least 30 wins.
 
THE "IF's"
IF LCU WINS: If the Lady Chaps defeat Drury, they will improve to 31-5 on the season and will they will improve their NCAA Division II postseason all-time record to 14-1. They would advance to the NCAA Division II National Championship Game scheduled for Friday evening (6:00 p.m. CT), facing the winner of the semifinal matchup featuring Indiana (Pa.) vs. Southwestern Oklahoma State.
 
IF LCU LOSES: If the Lady Chaps fall to the Lady Panthers, they will be eliminated from the tournament and their season will end with a record of 30-6.

TUESDAY TRIBUNE
No.24/25 and No.5-seed Lubbock Christian University shot a season-high 62.3% from the field behind a career-matching 28-point performance from Maddi Chitsey, and the Lady Chaparrals rolled to a 99-54 quarterfinal victory over No.20 and No.4-seed North Georgia Tuesday night at the NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Elite Eight Tournament at Alumni Hall. The Lady Chaps advance to the semifinals and face Drury at 7:30 p.m. (Central) Wednesday night.
 
Maddi Chitsey was a force inside for LCU. She was 11-of-12 from the field, with six rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a 32 plus/minus in 21 minutes of playing time. Her 11-of-12 from the field ranks as the second-most in Heartland Conference history (with at least 10 attempts) and it matches a program-high under 16^th-year head coach Steve Gomez set by Britttany Blackmon on Nov. 10, 2018 (against University of Southwest). Chitsey's 3-for-3 from long range matched a career high. Her total of 28 points matched a career high and was the highest in program history for an NCAA postseason game, topping Kelsey Hoppel's 27 points in the 2016 NCAA Division II Championship against Alaska Anchorage.
The production from the junior from Wall, Texas included 13 points in the first quarter of play, as she connected on her first five field goal attempts in the game. LCU used an 11-0 run, part of a 17-2 run, and shot 76.5% (13-of-17) in the quarter to take a 32-14 lead.
 
LCU's offense was hot throughout the game. They scored at least 21 points in every quarter and shot at least 47.1% in every quarter. Chitsey was 9-of-10 from the field in the first half and had 22 points at the break for a 53-28 halftime lead.
 
The Lady Chaps built the lead and went mostly with their reserves the second half. They received 30 points from their bench in the game, and 23 came in the second. Every Lady Chap in the lineup had at least a point in the game. LCU converted on a season-high 38 field goals and their 62.7% shooting mark from the floor was also a season-high.
 
Along with their highest scoring output in a game this season, LCU's numbers also included 13 three-pointers (four players with at least two three-pointers), 42 rebounds (+14 rebounding margin) and 25 assists. Juliana Robertson tied a career high with a team-leading seven rebounds. Of their 25 assists, Olivia Robertson registered a career high (seven assists) and Caitlyn Cunyus tied a career-high mark with six assists.
 
LCU had three players in double figures. Olivia Robertson (14 points) and Allie Schulte (12 points) joined Maddi Chitsey, who has a combined 54 points in her past two games.
 
North Georgia, held to 32.3% shooting in the game, has their season end at 30-5. They received 16 points from Abbie Franklin, 11 points from Julianne Sutton and 10 points from Vanessa Agrusa.
 
SUMMARIZING THE TITLE TALK
On Feb. 16, LCU claimed their second consecutive Heartland Conference regular season title (sixth conference title overall in program history and fourth in the Heartland Conference). It also marked the fifth time LCU has finished with at least a share of first place in the Heartland Conference. LCU had a first-place finish during the 2013-2014, when they were not permitted to claim the title label as part of their transition from NAIA. As for the Heartland Conference Tournament title, this season's conference tournament title was LCU's third Heartland Conference Tournament championship and their fourth conference tournament championship in program history. They added more hardware last week claiming their third berth to the Elite Eight Tournament, winning the South Central Region Tournament.
 
ALL-REGION ACCOLADES
Lubbock Christian University women's basketball's Maddi Chitsey and Olivia Robertson each received D2CCA All-South Central Region Team honors for the 2018-19 season.

Chitsey, a junior from Wall, Texas is coming off All-Tournament Team and MVP honors at the Heartland Conference Tournament after setting the program tournament scoring record averaging 20.3 points per contest on 59% (23/39) shooting. She has posted at least 10 points in 16 of the last 17 games (topping 20 in six of the games), which has her averaging 13.1 points per game on the season. She is sixth in the region in blocks (48), eighth in blocks per game (1.4) and 10th in field goals (176). Chitsey was a Heartland Conference preseason and regular season All-Heartland Conference selection this season.

Robertson leads the Lady Chaps in scoring and rebounding this season with an average of 14.4 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. The Kerrville, Texas native was an All-Tournament Team selection at the Heartland Conference Tournament with an average of 10.3 points and 8.0 rebounds, as she claimed her team-leading fifth double-double in the championship game of the tournament. She has a conference-leading 88.4% free-throw shooting percentage (second in the region and 14th nationally) on the season (122/138), which has her on pace with an 87.9% (277-315) career free-throw shooting percentage to finish second all-time in LCU program history. She is one of five players in the region with at least 425 points and 200 rebounds on the season and leads the region in minutes played (1082 minutes). Wednesday is set to be Robertson's 123rd career game, tying Magen Brunson (Drury, 2000-04) for the most in Heartland Conference history.

Named to the Second Team, Chitsey and Robertson mark the second season since joining NCAA Division II in which multiple Lady Chaps have been recognized. 
 
LCU ALL-CONFERENCE CONVERSATION
The All-Heartland Conference Women's Basketball Team honors were announced prior to the opening day of play at the Heartland Conference Tournament at the Pre-Tournament Awards Social. Here is a glance at LCU's award winners:

Steve Gomez – Coach of the Year
Olivia Robertson – First Team
Maddi Chitsey – First Team
Bobbi Chitsey – Honorable Mention
 
ALL-TOURNAMENT (CONFERENCE)
Maddi Chitsey tallied an LCU program single-game high for Heartland Conference Tournament performances with 24 points against Newman Sunday, leading to Conference Tournament MVP honors, as the conference announced the All-Tournament Team honors following LCU's win over Newman in the title game in Tulsa, Okla. Along with Chitsey, LCU's Olivia Robertson (10.3 points, 8.0 rebounds) and Allie Schulte (11.3 points, 3.3 assists) also received All-Tournament Team accreditation.
 
ALL-TOURNAMENT (REGION)
Olivia Robertson was named the South Central Region Tournament Most Outstanding Player after averaging 21.7 points in the trio of games. Maddi Chitsey joined her on the All-Tournament Team with 18.7 points per game.
 
NCAA POSTSEASON ROUNDUP
LCU's third NCAA Division II postseason run is nothing new when it comes to LCU's postseason success under head coach Steve Gomez. Prior to receiving NCAA Division II membership status, LCU made 10 consecutive appearances in the NAIA National Tournament and went 15-10 (all under head coach Steve Gomez). LCU is 13-1 all-time in NCAA postseason play. LCU is 50.8% from the field all-time in NCAA postseason play, with Nicole Hampton serving as their postseason points leader per average (17.8) and Tess Bruffey (138) tabbed as their all-time postseason points leader (she averaged 13.8 points per NCAA postseason game). Maddi Chitsey averages 17.1 points per NCAA postseason game and has played in eight contests. Chitsey is two points from passing Bruffey's career postseason mark of 138 points. Olivia Robertson has appeared in 10 postseason games and is averaging 11.7 points per game. She is 22 points behind Bruffey's career postseason points mark.
 
HOME IS WHERE THE STREAK IS
LCU is 15-0 this season inside Rip Griffin Center. With their last home game, which resulted in a 76-70 win over Angelo State on Mar. 16, LCU extended their active home win streak to 65 games, which ranks third all-time in NCAA Division II women's basketball (it actively leads NCAA Div. II). The record is 87 consecutive home victories by Nebraska-Kearney, who completed the task from Jan. 31, 1995 - Nov. 24, 2001. LCU's last home loss came on Jan. 1, 2015 against Oklahoma City University. LCU, who also has a 7-0 mark in NCAA postseason play in Lubbock in the mix, has also won 55 consecutive home conference games, with their last conference home loss occurring Jan. 10, 2013 (against Oklahoma City). They completed a 49-0 all-time mark in Heartland Conference home games.

NCAA DIVISION II'S LONGEST HOME WIN STREAKS
87 - Neb.-Kearney Jan. 31, 1995-Nov. 24, 2001
85 - West Tex. A&M Jan. 9, 1987-Dec. 6, 1991
65 - Lubbock Christian Jan. 1, 2015 -->
64 - Glenville St. Jan. 16, 1999-Dec. 1, 2004
64 - Delta St. Jan. 27, 2007-Nov. 12, 2011

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Lubbock Christian held opponents to 47.7 points per game in conference play and they are holding opponents to 52.6 per game overall this season, which ranks fifth nationally. The defensive efforts have led to LCU averaging a margin of victory of 20.9 points per game, which ranks seventh nationally. The Lady Chaps produced a 27.7 scoring margin advantage per game in conference play.

NO FOUL PLAY
The Lady Chaps rank 12th in the nation in fouls per game, with a conference-leading average of 13.9 fouls per game. Fouls have led LCU to outscoring their opponents 12.8 – 9.8 in points a game from the free-throw line. On Mar. 7 at the conference tournament, LCU allowed two free-throw attempts to Texas A&M International, which was the lowest amount during the 16-year coaching tenure of Steve Gomez at LCU. The Lady Chaps have shot over 80% from the free-throw line in 12 games this season and they have a mark of 73.8% on the season (second in the Heartland Conference). Olivia Robertson leads the team (of qualified attempts), shooting 88.4% (122/138) from the line to lead the conference (14^th nationally). 

FROM THE FIELD
Lubbock Christian continues to rank in the top-10 nationally in shooting, ranking fourth nationally with a 48.9% field goal shooting percentage. LCU has shot at least 41.9% in all but four games this season and have hit the .500 plateau on 14 occasions, including 11 of their last 19 games. They are shooting 51.6% this season in neutral site contests.

SISTER CHRISTIAN
On Nov.10, the Lady Chaps game against CSU-Pueblo marked the first time in LCU program history in which a pair of sisters tallied double figures, as LCU received double-digit point production from Olivia Robertson, Juliana Robertson, Bobbi Chitsey and Maddi Chitsey. LCU has three sisters on the squad, and Dec. 8 marked the first game this season in which all three sets of sisters played in the same game. Dec. 10 at Texas A&M International, marked the first time all six sisters contributed at least a point in the same contest. On Jan. 17 against Rogers State, all six scored at least one point, marking the first time the occurrence happened at home. Both Chitsey sisters also claimed All-Conference honors this season.

LENDING A HELPING HAND
LCU has four players with at least an average of 2.0 assists per game. Allie Schulte leads the team with 103 assists (2.9 per game), with Caitlyn Cunyus (87, 2.9), Olivia Robertson (84, 2.4) and Bobbi Chitsey (69, 2.0) also playing a role in the ball distribution. LCU averages 16.4 assists (leads the Heartland Conference and ranks 23^rd nationally) on 26.3 field goals per game. LCU has 573 assists (leads the conference), ranking 13^th nationally in the category.

MAD HOUSE
Inside player Maddi Chitsey has had the hot-hand for LCU, posting at least 10 points in 17 of the last 18 games (averaging 16.8 points per game over the last 18 games). In their last three-game road swing of the regular season, Maddi produced a 17.0-point and 6.7-rebounding average. She returned home for the regular season finale and posted 17 points. The shooting numbers continued into the postseason and in Tulsa, where she set LCU's Heartland Conference Tournament single-tournament scoring average mark with an average of 20.3 points. Chitsey is also averaging 6.3 rebounds per game over the prior 16 games and is a combined 16-of-30 (53.3%) over the past 12 games from three-point range.

NEUTRALIZING THINGS
The Lady Chaps are 7-1 this season in neutral court play. They went 1-1 at the St. Mary's Thanksgiving Classic in San Antonio, Texas and then defeated Simon Fraser at the Holiday Hoops Classic in Bellingham, Wash. (Dec. 18, 2018) before going 5-0 in postseason neutral site games (3-0 at the Heartland Conference Tournament in Tulsa). Three Lady Chaps average at least 10 points a game in neutral site play, with Maddi Chitsey (17.3) and Olivia Robertson (13.4) leading the way.

BOARD GAMES
The Lady Chaps rank seventh in the Heartland Conference in rebounds per game (34.6, which ranks 262^nd of 301 Division II programs), but they lead the Heartland Conference in rebounding margin with a mark of 7.0 (28^th nationally). Olivia Robertson leads LCU with 220 rebounds (6.3 per game). LCU has only been out-rebounded three times over the prior 32 games.

DOWNTOWN
The Lady Chaps rank 13^th nationally with 283 three-pointers on the season and is third with a shooting mark of 39.9% from long range. Allie Schulte leads the team, hitting three-pointers at a pace of 51.4% on the season (57/111), with 57 three-pointers ranking fifth in the conference.
 
SENIOR SALUTE
Seniors Olivia Robertson and Bobbi Chitsey are playing in their final postseason as members of the Lady Chaps. Each member are the last remaining active members off LCU's 2015-16 NCAA Division II National Championship squad. Robertson topped 1,000 career points on Mar. 15 and has 1,068 career points in 122 games, with 531 career rebounds. Chitsey has appeared in 120 career games and has 871 career points, with 407 boards. The pair of seniors, who are each All-Conference selections this season, have a four-year record of 115-17 (87.1%), which includes a closing out a 57-5 conference record, and they went 58-0 in home games.
 
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT DRURY
- Drury qualified with an automatic bid to their region after claiming the GLVC Tournament title. They are 35-0 on the season (18-0 finish in conference play is a GLVC record) after defeating Nova Southeastern 91-60 with a 38-15 scoring advantage in points-off-turnovers after forcing Nova into 40 turnovers. They also had a 21-4 advantage in second-chance-points. They are the only unbeaten team in Division II this season. 
- The Lady Panthers went 31-3 last season, with a 17-1 mark in GLVC play.
- DU is making their fourth Elite Eight Tournament in program history. The former Heartland Conference member (program claimed the HC title in 2004 and 2005) is in their 16^th national tournament appearance in 19^th year eligible.
- Hailey Diestelkamp was named the WBCA NCAA Division II Player of the Year and Drury head coach Molly Miller received the United States Marine Corps/WBCA NCAA Division II Coach of the Year.
- Drury's 40 forced turnovers Tuesday places their margin on the season at +522, which leads all levels.

THE SERIES AGAINST DRURY
This meeting will mark the first ever meeting between LCU and Drury. Springfield, Mo. Based Drury was a founding member of the Heartland Conference, which is fitting since this season marks the 20^th and final season of the Heartland Conference.